Life at Green Oak High
by Mashiitastic
Summary: I wish that high school will be uneventful. I wish that there won't be stupid drama. I wish that I'll be invisible. I wish that Nate and Shane Grey wouldn't mess with my life. Too bad wishes never come out the way you plan.
1. Ugh, First Day

**A/N – Ok, my first ever fanfic. Please go easy on me, well, don't. Give me constructive criticism and tell me whether or not I should continue.**

Here it is. My first ever day of high school. I'm so excited!! Yeah. Right. I was not looking forward to the year. I don't mind being a freshman, it's just that I live in a suburb with a bunch of whores. I'm talking about those slutty girls that always go tanning, and the really immature and perverted guys.

I'm snobby, and I'm already tan enough, thank you very much. I'm also pretty far from being called a slut. I'm known as a prude and no guys ever like me. Maybe it's because I'm a geek.

So I get good grades in school, and I'm not popular. And I occasionally wear glasses when I'm sitting far away from the board. Who cares? I wasn't looking forward to this year mainly because of the Grey brothers. I hate going to school with them. The girls go all gaga over them while I go all gagging. So what if they're hot? Who gives a shit? They're brainless jocks who think they own the entire school. And they happen to be the richest kids in the school.

If your dad's a music producer and your mom is some famous stylist, why would you even be going to a stupid public school? "Oh, we want to experience the regular teenage life. You know, have fun and go to parties," Jason, the oldest brother, a senior, would say when the school paper The Tiger Gazette interviewed them.

Parties as in the ones where there's a bunch of alcohol everywhere and the girl sluts become the Headmasters. Yeah, wink, wink. I don't get invited to these things and I'm majorly glad. Yes, even middle schoolers get invited. One of the Grey brothers was in middle school last year. Oh yeah, I never really did take the time to introduce myself, did I?

My name's Jenny, but some people call me Jenner, like my few friends and family. I have long black hair that's extremely straight. All the sluts who try to get their hair as straight as mine take quite some time doing it. I hate my chopped bangs, but I can't seem to get rid of them.

Compared to most girls, I'm considered really short, but I use the whole "I still have five years of puberty left" excuse when my mom mentions it. I'm also an outcast due to the fact that I'm Vietnamese. If you guys read Judy Blume's books, you should recognize Alison Monceau. She's from "Just as Long as We're Together" and her being Vietnamese is a good thing. It makes her popular. That doesn't work for me. I'm one of the only Asians, and that sucks.

I could use the whole "But I'm also part French" excuse. Nope, it doesn't work. The sluts are still jealous of my tan though. Why don't we introduce the Grey brothers now? They _are_ the stars of this upcoming story!!

Nate Grey – He's the youngest brother. He's going to be a freshman, just like me. He's always been in most of my classes because he's smart, I guess. He's got this weird curly afro going on. We've always sat close to each other since my last name is Huynh. He's pretty quiet, and I've never talked to him except for when he tries to cheat on me during tests. I hate it when people do that. It's so annoying. Of course, he wouldn't have time to study since he was up all night at one of the parties his house always seems to be holding.

Shane Grey – The Junior. The prima donna. The one who takes more time with his hair than it takes to make homemade ice cream like people did in the late 1800s. Not literally, of course, but you get the idea. Unlike Nate, he's extremely academically challenged. He was in my Math class in sixth grade. I'm pretty sure the same would go for this year, too. He would be an eleventh grader taking Geometry. Ha, ha, ha. I don't think I'll like math this year.

Jason Grey – He's the totally hot senior that girls my age drool over. Well, except for me. I seriously don't know anything about him, since I've never gone to school with him. Well, unless elementary school counts. He was young then. Not as bad as he is today. I hear that he rules the school and randomly picks a girl to sleep with at each of the Grey parties. As long as she fits the slut and Headmaster criteria, any girl's got a chance with him. Utterly repulsive. Gag me.

Did I mention that they're all football stars? Nate was quarterback in middle school, and Shane's a linebacker. Jason's captain and quarterback. Now, I know nothing about football. I still don't get what's so important about quarterbacks. Maybe I'll do some research later or something.

So, I'm standing in front of my walk-in closet, fresh out of the shower. What to wear for the first day of school? I'm going to do this experiment. Dress in revealing clothing and see if anybody recognizes me. It'll only be temporary, and I want to try something new, if only for one day. A hot pink bra and tight white tank top sounds good. Mini jean skirt fits with it, too. I'll just let my hair down today, even though it's extremely hot outside.

I couldn't help but slip some Vans on. Stripper heels were out of line for me. After 20 minutes of doing thick and dark eye make-up and putting on some hoop earrings, I was ready to go. As I run out the door with my blue backpack, I yell, "Bye, Mom! I'm leaving now and don't worry, I

have a Nutri-Grain bar!" My mom was upstairs still asleep of course. I live with my parents and little sister Gina

I was now walking to my bus stop two blocks away, breakfast in hand. You know, now that I think about it, my outfit's not slutty at all. Oh well, it's the best my closet can cough up. I live in the town of Green Oak, New Jersey. (**A/N – I'm pretty sure it's a fictional town..**) So of course I go to Green Oak High School. It's a population of about 900 students. Not much in my opinion. I reach my bus stop and wait for about three minutes before my best friend Nicole got there.

Nicole's been my closest friend since first grade. She's kind of my only friend, too. Her parents are from China. She's got side swept bangs and medium length layered hair with copper highlights. I was jealous of her hair, mainly because my parents never let me color it. I've always wanted blue highlights.. oh well.

"Dude, we're like, freshmen. Can you fucking believe it?! What the heck is up with your clothes?" she yelled.

"Oh, I'm doing a scientific experiment that's totally academic. Just trying to see if anybody recognizes me like this." I reply.

She gets this strange look on her face when she's thinking, and laughs. After about a minute of that, she says, "Did your mom catch you wearing that? But I do think you look pretty hot. It's temporary, right?"

After both of us laughing again, I shrug and tell her, "I ran my ass out of the door as fast as my legs could take me. I'm going back into regular mode by tomorrow. The school's got enough sluts."

We both silently agree on this as we wait for the bus to come. The stop is just us two since our area has mostly elderly people since it's so "quiet" and "tranquil." We're one of the last stops so it's always hard to find a good seat. When we got on bus number 3, I saw a few familiar faces, but everybody else looked so.. mature.

You could see an upperclassman making out with some brunette chick. Nicole and I find a seat near the back and sit down while the bus rolled on. The jocks always sit in the back, and I could hear the make-out session. I was still holding my half eaten Nutri-Grain bar, too. I resist the urge to puke.

"Nicole, do you want half my breakfast?" I ask her.

"Sure thing, Jenner. Yum, strawberry. My favorite!" she squeals. We've always shared our food like this with each other. I guess it's what some best friends do.

"Hey! Asian chick, you new here or something?" I hear some guy yell. I turn around and it was one of the jocks I recognized that was in my homeroom last year. He was looking smug with a disgusting smirk on his face.

I snap. "Shut the fuck up. That's none of your damn business." Nicole just sat there looking at me with huge eyes and her mouth open.

I could hear that sucker's friends going "Ooh, man, she dissed you." Who cares? I was feeling confident for once. I hate guys, they're all annoying and immature. That fucker then says to his friends "You guys up for a COD session tonight?" Of course, that means Call of Duty. Seriously, how immature is that?

The bus pulls up to the school about five minutes later. There standing in front of me was Green Oak High. The dreaded high school that housed the Grey brothers. My virtually empty stomach turned and twisted.

"Oh yeah, Jenner. I can't wait to go to the football games! Jason's sooo hot," Nicole say after we jump off the bus.

"So your crush is Jason?" I ask, shocked.

"Well, he's so FINE. Drool-worthy, girl. And he's a senior," she replies.

"Yeah, and he could possibly be a walking STD" I shoot back.

She stands there with her arms crossed and says, "I don't get why you hate them so much. Seriously, what'd they do to you?"

I stand there looking defeated and calmly say, "I just don't like arrogant jerks, okay? It's just one of my pet peeves." She finally drops the subject about the Greys and we go to our separate homerooms, but not before hugging and wishing each other good luck.

Since the homerooms were alphabetized, I wasn't surprised to see Nate in my homeroom. Of course, I was blessed with the assigned seat of sitting right next to him. I was now forced to sit with Nate Grey for the rest of my high school life each morning. It can't be that bad, right?

I ask Nate, "Hey, dude. Good morning. Can I see your schedule?" He looks at me, shock evident on his face.

"Uh, sure thing Jenny." While he takes the crumpled piece of paper out of his pocket, I see that he has Geometry, English, History, and lunch period with me. He was taking grade level science while I was taking Biology I.

I hand it back to him and say, "Cool, we've got a couple classes together." After the teacher Mrs. Martin took role, the bell rang. I was off to gym. Maybe this year won't be as bad as I thought. If Nate was nice, maybe brothers wouldn't be so bad.

But I couldn't help but think to myself, _maybe I'm wrong…_

**A/N – Please review and tell me what you think!! I spent about an hour and a half writing this, and I want to see what you guys think. I don't have a serious plot in mind, so I'm freestyling it. I'd be happy to take some suggestions.**

**With love, Judy.**


	2. Yum, Water Ice

**A/N – Okay, sorry for the confusion last chapter. Jenny lives with her parents and little sister Gina, who's now a sixth grader. I've gotta work on my writing skills with past tense/present tense/future tense shit. I've always had a problem with that and frequently lose points on school essays because of it. Thanks to luckyheartsfrobro, Snoopyfulastic and purplerains whitetiger for reviewing the first chapter.**

So here I was, sitting in the front gym of Green Oak High. Since today was the first day, we wouldn't be doing anything except for taking role and open gym. That would be any sport that just takes a ball and not much other equipment. Unfortunately, this class isn't freshmen only. There were a couple sophomores and juniors. Not a lot of people are noticing my outfit today. I'm kind of surprised. I knew I should've chosen a black bra!! Or maybe it's because this attire is so common in school.

Nicole had gym this period, too, but she was at the back gym instead. I started looking around and I noticed that Shane was in this class. I don't consider that a big deal. Our class had about 30 kids, so he wouldn't really notice me. I still hated being within 30 yards of him, though. The teacher named Mr. Wendler blew his whistle. He yelled out over the still talking kids "Ok, we are doing volley ball today." Hmm, volleyball. I always manage to somehow injure myself in this, but I still like the sport. A couple bruises were kind of worth it.

This group of cheerleaders invited me to play with them. One tall blonde chick said to me "Hey! New girl. Like, do you wanna play with us or something? We're kinda short on people and stuff. My name's Morgan." Oh, so blondie had a name. I got up from my spot and said "Uh, like, sure thing! I would sooo love to." It was fun playing along. She replied "Cool. So these are my friends Cassie and Erica. We're all juniors." Cassie was a short brunette like me and Erica had red hair and a six-pack. I could tell because of the shirt she was wearing. Could it even be considered a shirt? Why does the school let girls wear the most degrading clothes? The guys didn't seem to mind as a couple of them were spanking their asses as they walked by

They girls didn't seem to mind though. I guess it's a regular thing for them to randomly get spanked or something. I would freak out if a guy did that to me. While we were bumping the ball around, I was actually having some fun. These girls didn't really seem so bad. I wasn't thinking as I bumped the ball, and it reached over Cassie's head. We just stood there and stared as the ball went sailing, hitting Shane right in the back of his head. I stood there motionless, not knowing what to say.

"Who the fuck did that?! They are so dead on my watch.." Shane yelled.

"It's that Asian chick! I'm like, so sorry Shane" said Erica, as that little groupie rushed to his side.

They just totally ratted on me! What do I expect though? Ten minutes of bonding obviously meant nothing to them. They didn't even ask me for my name. Ugh, that was short-lived. The girls were now making these disgusting "seductive" faces at him. I can tell they're one of his followers or something. He pushed them away and walked to me. What the fuck? He just shoved me! "Who do you think you are 

throwing balls at my face like that?!" he yelled in my face. I was thinking, Uhm, dude, don't you do that to girls like, every week? Hypocrite. But instead, I said "Uh.. sorry?" He looked at me incredulously. "I don't care who you are, you're gonna regret messing with me." He gave me his best glare and walked off to his posse. Ok, what the hell just happened? I am so staying away from volleyballs now!

And what did he mean when he said "You're gonna regret messing with me"? First day of school, and I've already made enemies with a guy I'm trying to stay away from. I decided to just walk out of the door and go stay in the bathroom. I'll leave when the bell rings to go to my next class, which was Biology. One of my few classes that doesn't include any of the Grey brothers.

Within twenty minutes, I'm sitting in Biology while the teacher was going on and on about how great this year was going to be. She was named Mrs. Mullen. I could tell she was in her late 30s, and she was pregnant. Great, I thought to myself. If I'm going to end up liking her, she's going to go off and have a baby while we're probably gonna get some retarded sub for this class. "This year, we will be dissecting frogs, but that won't be for quite a while." Girls groaned while guys whooped. I just sat there with no expression. I don't want to dissect a frog. They're slowly becoming endangered thanks to Global Warming.

Nicole was in this class, too. We didn't sit close to each other since her last name was Zhou. She's always in the back. I kind of feel bad for her, but she never seems to mind. I think I fell asleep or something, because next thing I knew, the bell rang and it was time for Spanish II. Nicole had to drag me to my feet and get me out the door. "I know that class was boring, but you never fall asleep. What's wrong?" she asked me. "Dude, it's the first day of school, and I've already fucked up. Big time" I answered. She got that thinking look again. "I mean fucked up as in I accidentally threw a volleyball at Shane Grey's head and he said 'You are gonna regret messing with me'" I explained. "Ohh. Wait, you threw a volley ball at **Shane Grey**'s head?!" she screamed. "Yes, I did. Quit screaming, you're hurting my ears. I hope he wasn't serious though…" I whispered. She was still screaming "But it was his head! His mane of gorgeous hair!" Did I mention that Shane was a prima donna? Obsessed with his hair and spent more time with it than people did making ice cream in the 1800s? Yeah, it took me an entire period to finally figure out why he was so mad. "Oh shit, I totally forgot about his hair!" I yelled. I had to get to Spanish before I was late, so Nicole and I went our separate ways.

I really hope he wasn't that mad.. oh, who was I kidding? He was furious! We were only reviewing today in Spanish, and I was thinking, Voy vas va, vamos vais van. I know all the forms of ir, okay? Sheesh, I'm still wondering why I didn't sign up for French. Oh yeah, the fact that it was the "language of love" freaked me out when I was a sixth grader. Yeah, I was that much of a prude. I couldn't wait until the class was over, because I had fifth period lunch, which was next. My so called breakfast had definitely not filled me up. All the thanks go to that couple that were making out in the back seats. Have they ever heard of the word respect? Gross.

Whoo! Lunch, here I come! I brought ten bucks with me today. I headed into the cafeteria and I got in line to go to the kitchen. I grabbed cheese fries, a pizza, water ice, and some iced tea. I had four dollars left after I paid, so I went and bought some cookies in the snack line. I sat down next to Nicole and 

started digging in. She traded her brownie for my cookies. Nicole and I had Biology, lunch and Health together. At least I would have somebody to talk to during lunch. "Jenner, word about you and Joe's spreading pretty fast throughout the school" she told me after grabbing some of my fries. After swallowing some pizza, I said "Who cares? What's the best he can do?" She pondered this thought for a moment and said "Well, since he's in this lunch period, it could be something to do with food." I spat out some iced tea. "What!?" After a couple seconds of wiping down the table, she said "You haven't noticed? He's sitting two tables away from us. To your left." I looked to my left, and there he was. Nate was sitting there, too, along with a couple more jocks. "Well, this sucks. At least he's not looking our way."

And just as I said that, he looked up at me and gave me a mischievous stare. Does that mean he's plotted revenge? Nate looked confused and followed the stare of his brother. When his eyes landed on me, he had this puzzled look on his face. I could tell my cheeks were heating up. After a couple seconds, he waved to me, and I waved back. Wow, Nate just waved to me! I thought homeroom was a lot, but now he's openly greeting me. Shane saw the wave and glared at Nate. They continued on with their discussion with the other jocks about cheerleaders. How typical of them.

I finished about 75 of my lunch before I got full and headed for the trash cans. As I got up, so did Shane. When I stopped, so did Shane. Was he following me or something? He was holding something behind his back, and I was wondering what I was. I warily walked to the trash cans and dumped everything but my melted water ice. I had a feeling I'd need this. He pulled out.. a water bottle. Ok, that is sooo not original. The dude seriously doesn't have any brains. He was right in front of me now, and I was asking myself, Why the fuck aren't you moving your useless legs?! He's about to drench you! But I couldn't move my legs. I was frozen, just staring at him. He poured the water down my head, and splattered it across my shirt. Ok, I am never wearing a tank top again! I saw Nate looking at all this, and he just ducked his head down. Was he embarrassed? Shane was smirking again. I have no idea how much time went by, but instead of yelling my ass off and making him happy, I took the water ice, stood on my toes, and poured it down his head.

My instincts were right! I **would** need the water ice. Right then I realized what I just did. I messed with Shane's prized possession again, for the second time in a single day. The entire cafeteria was silent now. I then bolted out and went to the bathroom to try to dry off my now see through shirt. Shit shit shit shit. I fucked up, again. AGAIN. I have no idea what I'm gonna do now. I'm still in the bathroom. The bell's about to ring. I can't go out yet, I'm scared of what might happen. If you mess with any of the Grey brothers, their groupies will terrorize you. I've heard some people telling me this.

But the bell just rang, and I can't risk being late for class. I had no choice but to go to my Geometry class. When I got in, I saw Shane with wet, clean and wavy hair, Nate sitting next to him. My seat was next to Shane. Oh crap, I thought to myself. This is sooo gonna suck.

I sat down on my seat, my shirt still a bit see through. Shane was glaring at me. Our Geometry teacher happened to be fresh out of college, and he was new and young. Seeing my shirt, he blushed. I'm so.. embarrassed. I wonder if Shane's over what I just did to him..

I was shocked when he turned around in his seat and said "Hey, wanna come to a Grey party this Friday?"

**A/N – Okay, so please review and tell me what you think? And why do you think Shane's asking her to go to a party.. Tune in next time and see. :D**


	3. So, There's a Party?

**A/N – Sorry for mixing up Shane and Joe. Just think of them as the Jonas Brothers, OK? And remember, they're not famous, just popular assholes. **

I stared at him in shock. About twenty seconds passed before Nate spoke up. "Uh, we'd really like you to come, Jenny." Shane's eyes widened, then he said "You mean that this is Jenny Huynh? The nerd that used to be in my math class?" I scoffed. "Nerd? Watch your use of vocabulary there. The definition of a nerd is somebody who is so involved in academics that they don't care for their personal hygiene. I brush, floss and rinse. And I shower daily." Shane shot back "Well, you're a nerd for knowing that then. Fine then. You're a dork." I was getting pissed, and replied "A dork is also a whale penis, jock strap." He screamed, "Well, fine then! You're a geek!" He wouldn't stop, would he? "A geek is obsessed with computers and electronics. Last time I checked, I wasn't."

I think he finally gave up and said "Whatever, trying to be smart.. bitch." I don't care if he called me a bitch or not. Whatever. Nate finally decided to speak up again and said "Jenny.. you didn't accept the invite or decline it." He seemed pretty hesitant, while Shane was smiling at me. Okay.. creepy much? I've never been to one of their parties before, but maybe I should accept and go just for the experience. I'll stay away from the sluts and booze, no problem. Right?

"Uh, sure then. I'll come by Friday. What time?" I asked. Shane said "Around seven or eight." That's pretty early.. so I kept asking questions. "What time does it end then?" I think Shane was getting annoyed, but replied "Whenever the girls we fuck get their asses out of the house. You can leave anytime, though." My mouth formed an "O" and that was that. I seriously wonder what time that would be, though.

Why would Shane just invite me to a party? I don't get it. "Wait, dude. I just dumped sugared water on your precious hair. You're inviting me to your party, why?" I asked him. He was seriously starting to look fed up, but said "Just come to the damn party, okay?!" Geez, what's his problem? If he's so desperate for me to come to his party, something must be up. If you guys haven't noticed yet, I'm not stupid. Then I asked "Can I bring my BFF Nicole?" and this time Nate answered. "Sure, bring whoever you want. It's a party celebrating the beginning of a new school year." Wow, Nate and Shane sure have different ways of voicing things. "Thanks Nate, for being so KIND about it" I said. Shane scoffed and looked away from me. How typical of him. The reason why I'm bringing Nicole is so that we can watch out for each other at the party. I don't trust these guys, and if they slip LSD or Ecstasy in my drink, I better have someone help me out of the mess if I do get stuck in it.

Geometry breezed by after that, and all the teacher was doing was talking about rays, formulas to find surface area, and radiuses and shit. I wasn't paying attention. Walking out of class, some girls yelled my name. How'd they know it? I turned around and there were a bunch of these blonde chicks staring at me. What the heck did they want? I was about to ask that when one of them spoke up and said "You know, nobody messes with Shane in this school." Oh, these are the girls that terrorize people who mess with the Greys. I should've seen this coming. Another one screamed "YOU FUCKING HURT MY POOH-BEAR!!" WTF? Pooh-bear? Oh. My. God. I will never look at Winnie the Pooh in the same way. The first 

blonde whispered to the second "Angela, it's okay. She's not worth it." Angela then yelled "But she messed with my Shaney-boo, Heather." I swear, she was about to cry or something.

So let me get this straight. Angela is either Shane's girlfriend, or she's completely and utterly obsessed with him. Heather seems to be her best friend. And they seem to be the leaders of this group of blonde bimbos. Oh wait, not all of them are natural blondes. This one girl had terrible roots. HAHAHA. "Uh.. sorry for 'hurting' your 'Pooh-bear' and 'Shaney-boo', Angela, but I've seriously got to get to class." As I tried to inch myself towards English, one chick grabbed my arm and slapped me. What the fuck? She just fucking slapped me. Okay, nobody slaps me and gets away with it. She just pulled on my earring! That's so predictable, though. Wait, that girl was Morgan. I took off the hoops and dropped them to the floor. I wouldn't need those anymore. I was ready to punch her, and she was about to slap me, AGAIN (seriously, can't she think of something better? Watching the WWE every week can help you a tad bit), when a teacher yelled at us.

I turned around and saw Mr. Wendler walking up to this whole event. The halls were dead silent and empty except for us, and I knew that I was late to English. "Jenny, what is going on here?" he asked me. I stuttered for a couple seconds before saying "Uhh.. I was leaving class to go to my next one when these girls come up to me and talk about Winnie the Pooh. What a disgrace, Mr. Wendler. Then Morgan slaps me. I had no part in this whatsoever." It was so easy for me to get out of trouble. I had a pink hand print on my cheek to go with it. Mr. Wendler tells Morgan to come with him while he writes the rest of us passes to class. That was way too easy. Except for the fact that my cheek hurts, I seriously think that the sluts here are weak as shit. Pulling on earrings? That's pathetic. At least I can go to English virtually unscathed.

I walked in and gave the female teacher Mrs. Kelly my pass. I was only about 5 minutes late, so it was no problem. She told me to sit next to Nate. As I took my seat, Mrs. Kelly continued on with her lecture about Shakespeare and how brilliant of a poet he was. In my opinion, some of his plays are quite messed up, but whatever teachers say, I'll just kiss up to them. Nate was staring at my face, and before he could ask the question, I quietly answered "This chick named Morgan slapped me because I hurt Angela's Pooh-bear. Care to fill me in on Pooh-bear?" Nate starts smiling and says "Angela is Shane's girlfriend. She's kind of obsessed with him. Shane just considers her his sex buddy, though." I nodded my head in understanding while soaking in this information. "Wait, so does he sleep with other girls at parties then?" I asked him. He replied "Yeah, but most of the time it's with Angela, though. She doesn't believe other girls when they tell her they've slept with him during their 'relationship.'" I couldn't help but giggle at this.

"So, why is Shane inviting me to a party all of a sudden?" I ask Nate. He shruggs and says "Hm, beats me." I could tell he was trying to hide something. I don't really care. I'm just glad that Nate's not being a jerk to me. I'm surprised that he's this nice. "How come I never got invited to one of these parties before by you, then?" I asked him. He stares at his desk for a second before whispering "Because you weren't really popular.." I guess that's understandable. I don't talk to him for the rest of the period. Thirty minutes later, the bell rings and I run to Health. I do not want to see those girls again.

The teacher told the class that we wouldn't have assigned seats if we behaved. How awesome is that!? Nicole and I sit down together and I squeal "Nicole, you and I have been invited to the Grey's back to school party this Friday!!" Nicole just stares at me, then she screams "LIKE, OMG. You're kidding right?!" Wow, she talks funny sometimes. And she actually said it like "Oh Em Gee." I laugh and say "Nope, not at all. No, but let's get some serious talk." Nicole calms down and listens to me while I continue. "I have a feeling that they're trying to set something up to take revenge on me for spilling water ice on Shane's head. So far, it's Shane-1, Me-2. They're trying to get even. So, you need to come along and watch out for me, and I'll do the same for you. I think they're gonna try some stupid prank or something." Nicole then says "What's the worse they can do? Spike the punch?" I sigh "Look. I think these parties could be dangerous. Booze is normal, but what if they slip in some serious drugs or do something that goes too far? Ecstasy stays in your system for about 40 years, you know? I'll never get a job!"

I think Nicole's finally starting to understand what I'm trying to say. She groans "Let's just try to have fun, okay?" I give up and say "Fine, we'll try." She then says "You're pretty paranoid, you know?" I reply "I'm just too sheltered and grounded thanks to my parents." I seriously wonder why I'm talking about all of this so lightly. I mean, I hate the Grey brothers. This is all too much for one day. The rest of the day goes off without a hitch and Nate doesn't say another word to me. Is he avoiding me?

I unlock the door to my house and bolt inside before my mom can see my appearance. Dad's at work. He's a carpenter, whoo-hoo. I quickly take out some baby wipes (LOL) and wipe away all of the make-up. It comes off really easily. Hooray for baby wipes! I then change into an El Toro t-shirt and plaid pajama shorts. I always dress comfy when I'm at home. When I get downstairs, my sister Gina bursts through the front door. She is dressed head to toe in Hannah Montana gear. It almost scares me. She yells to me "Jenny!! My first day was sooo good. There's this really cute guy in my class, too!" Oh no, my sister is starting to like guys. What to say.. "Gina, you're too young to be dating." She scoffs and tells me "Well, Mom doesn't need to tell you that since no guy would ever want to date you." She sticks out her tongue at me and runs to her room. I forgot to mention that she's a brat. Well, the brat's correct about the guys not liking me.

I head down to the kitchen to grab an orange and Mom asks me how school went. "Oh, it was fine. I got invited to a back-to-school party. Can I go?" She stops chopping up vegetables for tonight's dinner and says "What kind of party?" I reply "Oh, just a regular party, really. Nothing big or serious." She gets this doubtful look on her face, but says "Sure. Just be home by midnight, okay honey? Who are you going with?" I take a while to answer because I'm just in shock. My mom never lets me go to parties unless it's a birthday party and she knows the parents. "Uh, Nicole." I say. "Oh, that sounds good then. Can you continue with these vegetables? I've got to water the garden" she tells me.

I'm now laying in bed, replaying the day in my head. If you're wondering why Gina nor Mom mentioned the slap, it's because Morgan's so weak, it faded. Not even a bruise. I think that's almost sad. Even as I lay there trying to go to sleep, my brain is buzzing with images of Nate and Shane. This really sucks. I'm thinking about scenarios where Shane can get revenge on me. Getting me drunk is too predictable. Drugging me up? He can't be that low. The house is huge so it has many possibilities. My eyes are so going to be peeled the entire night. I decide to go on MySpace and YouTube until I feel sleepy. It's 2 

A.M. before I can finally go to sleep. Tomorrow would be Thursday. My last thoughts before dozing off are _I hate Shane, I hate Shane, I hate Shane…_

**A/N – So this was a filler, but I just wanted to talk about the party and how obsessed some girls are with Shane. Thanks everybody for reviewing. Does anybody have suggestions for what Shane will do to Jenny at the party? I'm open to any of them. If nobody comes up with one, I don't have a problem of making one up myself. I have no idea where this story's going, I'm just writing down my ideas whenever the come. Two more days 'til the party!**


	4. Yuck, Serpents

**A/N – Sorry for author's notes all the time!! Well, thanks to everybody for reviewing/reading this. It means a lot to me. Oh yeah, Jenny's named after my best friend Jenny, and Nicole's personality is totally based on her, and Jenny's is my personality. I seriously do think stuff like that about people.. Unfortunately. xD**

Okay, today is the **second** day of school. Like I said, it's only the second, and I can sense some drama coming up. I roll over to my beeping alarm clock and see that it's six in the morning. I hate waking up so early. After my ten minute shower (I'm trying to conserve water) I feel kind of sad standing in front of my closet. I kind of liked my outfit yesterday. I guess I'll just go back to the true Jenny. So it's a green t-shirt about world peace, slightly flared jeans, and my good ol' black Chucks. This is who I really am. Not a girl who dresses in revealing clothes that shows her ass and stomach.

I opted for a Pop-Tart today and let Nicole have it since I wasn't feeling so hungry. "Gah dammit, I'm starting to feel sick, dude" Nicole said to me. I get a sinking feeling inside me. "You mean, sick, sick?" I ask her. She replies "Yeah, SICK, SICK." This is bad, this is really, really bad. "Wait, you mean.. you can't come to the party tomorrow night?!" I all but yelled. She gives me an apologetic look and says "I'm really sorry, Jenner." After a couple deep breaths, I tell her "I'm not worried about the party really. I think I can kind of manage on my own, but I'm concerned about your health." Did I tell you guys that I want to be a pediatrician when I grow up? "It's nothing too serious. Maybe a temporary case of the flu or something" she replied. I saw her pull out a tissue and blow into it.

"Oh great, the bus is here. Whoop-dee-doo!!" I say sarcastically. We hop on the bus and opt to sit in the front seats this time. Some of the kids on there are giving me strange looks. Okay.. weird much? "Nicole.. have you noticed that some people are looking at me all funky?" I whispered to her. She looks around and says "I think word about you and Morgan and Shane and the whole Angela/Heather crew spread around.. that could be a pretty darn good explanation." I thought all that was over and done with. What was I thinking? A couple hours can't really change that much, can it?

The both of us get off the bus and Nicole starts looking dizzy. Oh no, she looks like she's about to puke. Maybe I shouldn't have let her eat that Pop-Tart. "Seriously, dude, can you make it through the day?" I asked her. I was getting really worried. "Uh, yeah.. I think I ca – " she cut off while running into the nearest bathroom. After three minutes, she comes out and said "I puked out my fucking guts.. I think I'll wait 'til lunch to go to the nurse or something." She seriously looked green, and not to sound selfish or anything, but I'm going to that party alone. I wanted my first Grey party experience to be with my best friend. Looks like that's not going to happen.

"Well, lunch is only a couple periods away, but you sure you can make it?" I'm getting worried now. She nods and we both go to our homerooms. As I get to my locker to get my books for Biology and Spanish, I see some note stuck on the front. I open it up and it says "You're going to, like, soo regret messing with my Shaney-boo! Signed, anonymous." Oh God, don't tell me Angela just wrote anonymous. Wow, she is seriously dumb. I laugh to myself and open my locker to find a small milk snake. I step back and try not to scream. How did she know that my biggest fear was snakes?! Oh, and if somebody helped her with 

this, they might've thought that I'd mistake this snake for a coral one. A coral snake is pretty venomous, and the snakes have similar body patterns, but it's a tad bit different. I know my snakes, and that this thing was harmless.

I try to be brave and grab some tissues I kept in a small compartment on the locker door and gently grabbed the snake. People were staring at me, startled, as I walked by them. I went to my biology class and told Mrs. Mullen to keep it there and I told her the whole story. I am so a teacher's pet. It kind of helps at times. She put it in a spare cage and let me go back to my homeroom. As I sat down next to Nate, he refused to even acknowledge me. "Uh, why were you walking around with a snake?" he asked me. I just said "Found it in my locker. Probably one of Shane's fuck buddies did it or something. Mrs. Mullen has it now." I feel so brave!! Normally I'd freak out, but I didn't want to cause much more of a scene. I'm not going to get revenge. She's not worth it, it was a harmless snake, and I'm better than that.

By the time homeroom was over, the entire freshmen class heard about my little "adventure" that morning. I mean, it's a small population, of course it'd spread quickly. I could feel stares as I headed for gym, but nobody was going to talk to me. I opted not to participate in anything since my mood was kind of down now. Cassie and Erica walked up to me, hands on their hips, looking really arrogant and bitchy. They were trying to act tough, but it sooo wasn't working. You don't act tough by making your face look like a fucking fish. Ooh, that was alliteration. Cassie was the first to speak. "You know, because of you, Morgan's like, suspended for the rest of the week." Then Erica said "And her mom's banning her from going to the party tomorrow night." All I said was "Can't she sneak out or something? I mean, it's not that hard, REALLY." Cassie yells "Morgan's mom wired her room. If the door or window moves, it'll set an alarm and everyone in the house will know she snuck out and try to stop her." Whoa, that's drastic measures in my opinion. "How can she eat or shower then?" I ask them. Erica says "She has a mini fridge with take-out, a microwave, and her own bathroom. She can live in there for like, an entire week."

Okay, wow. If I had a mini fridge filled with Chinese take-out in my room, I'd be in heaven. "We're just letting you know that you better watch your back. We'll get you at that party!" Cassie screams at me. Is every cheerleader in this school stupid? You're not supposed to tell me when y ou're going to take revenge on me. You're supposed to keep me guessing. Don't they read murder mystery novels or watch those murder mystery TV shows? Wait, not even that. Where the heck did their common sense go? Well, all the better for me since I know when they're going to try and get back at me. And they can forget tomorrow. I'll be out that day. I'm going in for an early whitening session at the ortho. Mom wants me to stay home the entire day, and that's just fine with me.

"Sure thing girls, thanks for telling me the info" I tell them. I slip off the bleachers and cautiously walk away from them. Might as well play with a hacky sack while waiting for that stupid bell. I feel a basketball hit the back of my knees as I fall forward. It didn't hurt, but I was damn pissed. Before I could scream out curse words, I hear Shane say "It doesn't feel so good to get hit by balls, huh Jenny?" As I stand up, my knees make a loud cracking noise. Shane's face drops and he gets this weird shocked look. Oh. My. God. He thinks he's injured me! I am soo going to take advantage of this. "Ahh!! My knee! My fucking knee!! What the fuck did you do to it?! You are sooo dead. I'm gonna sue your ass to Hell and 

you're going to get expelled and – " I was cut off by Shane rushing to my side. "I am so so so sorry Jenny! How's your knee? I didn't mean to hurt you, are you okay? I don't mind getting sued, but please take pity on me on the expulsion part." He wasn't speaking so loudly. I don't think he wanted his friends to hear his words.

He was acting extremely out of character. What the heck's going on? He's supposed to be a total jerk, and now he's apologizing?! Oh wait, I know now. He's a totally selfish bastard. He's just afraid of getting in trouble with the administration. He's not acting out of character now, is he? I think my act is up as I finally stand up straight and say "Thanks for being a total pussy. My knees crack like that all the time, dumbass." Of course, Shane gets a pissed off look on his face. Instead of getting madder, he just whispers to me "Funny how you're calling me a pussy. I already get enough of that, don't worry." I think my cheeks flushed or something because he smiled, winked, then arrogantly walked away. He's fucked up in more ways than one. I'm pretty used to guys saying stuff like that to me, but when Shane said it.. it was so strange. I mean, I BLUSHED. I don't get it, I don't blush that much. I've been adjusting to words like those since I was eleven. Ugh, my head hurts.

When I get to Biology, I can see Nicole looking seriously pale, then I notice that the snake's gone. OH NO! Where'd the snake go?! I think Mrs. Mullen sees my face and tells me that she got it sent to the ASPCA. Whoo, that's a huge relief. When Nicole and I finally make it through the doors after class, I GENTLY grab her arm and ask her "Are you sure you're alright? You're looking pale, and the fact that you're Chinese kind of means something when I say that." She tries to laugh, but nothing really comes out. "Like I said Jenner, I'll wait 'til lunch" she hoarsely whispered. I breeze through Spanish and run as fast as I can to the cafeteria. I see Nicole sitting there, looking so weak. I tell her to sit there while I grab her some fresh squeezed orange juice. Well, Tropicana's fresh squeezed is the best I can get my hands on. At least there's some vitamin C. She flinches while she drinks it. All I got for myself was a salad with Italian dressing. Do you know how fattening Caesar dressing is? Trust me, you don't want to know. "I'm going to the nurse now. I feel like total shit" Nicole tells me. We get passes from one of the teachers on lunch duty and I escort her to the office and wait while she calls her mom.

I leave when the bell rings signaling me to go to Geometry. I make a quick stop at my locker, which had yet another note. All it said this time was "The snake wasn't enough, huh? You better watch your back now, Chink." Oh no she/he didn't! Whoever sent this just called me a Chink. That's worse than some white geek going up to a black kid and saying "Wassup nigga?" Yeah, worse than that. I am seething as I sit down next to Shane. I don't even notice him there, I'm just too mad. Shane turns in his seat towards my direction and asks me "So why do your knees crack?" He's still hung up on the whole knee incident? I rolled my eyes as I said "I don't know, okay? They like making weird sounds." So what if my knees randomly crack? It's nothing to talk about.

I'm not being myself, I'm not paying attention in class. What's wrong with me? Both brothers ignore me for the rest of the day while I walk through the house in a daze. Gina's still her peppy self in High School Musical clothing and light up sneakers. Why is my sister so Disney obsessed? I fall asleep really well for once. Tomorrow's the party. I can sense some stuff is going to happen. I doubt that the sluts have 

anything good planned. I know Shane's going to be doing something.. I'm just not sure. I'll be on my own..

**A/N – I am so sorry this chapter sucked!! I have quite some stuff planned for the next chapter, which is the party!! I hope that'll make it up. What's going to happen?? Dun dun dun…**


	5. No, My Eyes!

Oh. My. God. Today is Friday. FRIDAY!! I don't know whether to be excited or scared. I'll be missing school today, and so will Nicole. I'm getting my teeth whitened, which is pretty cool. I suffered braces for the past two years, and now that I got them off, I'm getting my teeth whitened. I want my teeth to be absolutely perfect. That might be a weird goal, but trust me. I'm a perfectionist when it comes to teeth. Don't know where I got it from..

My mom, Gina and I drove to the office about three miles away. The process is not fun. They just put some gunk on your teeth and beam it with this light or something. That was only my first session, too. I've got a couple more to go. My teeth feel all weird when I finally get home. I decide to take an extra long nap since I have nothing to do today. I wake up a couple hours later to see that it's only two. I do some homework and call the homework hotline to see what we had today. It's only a couple worksheets for Geometry that I can print right off the school website.

After and hour of doing my homework, I decide to plan for the party. Hmm.. What should I wear? My closet mainly consists of those hippy t-shirts I told you guys about. I just pick a black beater with the word "love" on the back in traditional Chinese. Seriously, if you look at that character or whatever, you'll see why it's called love. When I first saw it, the first thing I saw through the lines was two people kind of fucking each other. **(A/N - Don't tell me you don't see it!)** I find it pretty funny. I pick up a short black skirt. It's the kind that blows whenever you walk. I have to make sure that I wear short shorts underneath. I spend the next couple hours reading Fruits Basket. You guys should so read it sometime. It's just weird how the author comes up with the zodiac people morphing when they get hugged. That's really got to suck. You can't hug anyone unless you want to change into the animal of the year you were born in.

I would change into a dog. Woof-woof. I glance at my clock again and see that it's six. Time to go shower and change. I slip on some black flip-flops as I walk out the door and say bye to Mom and Gina. I then hear Gina yell "Mom, I think I'm going to bed early tonight, okay? Don't check up on me!!" Okay, what the fuck? Gina never goes to sleep when the sun's still shining. Something must be up. I walk over to Nicole's house which was four blocks away. Her mom lets me in and I go up to her room. She looks like she's dying.. Oh God. "Nicole, how you feeling?" I ask her. She turns towards me and says "How do you think I'm fucking feeling? I feel like shit and I have PMS. Ugh, too tired.." She rolls over and falls asleep. Wow, she is definitely not acting like herself. I quietly whisper goodbyes while I head downstairs. I say bye to her mom and start walking to the Grey's house. I could've sworn I heard bushes moving or something.

Eh, maybe it's the wind. Wait, I don't feel any drafts.. Weird. The Grey house is about one and a half miles from Nicole's, but I still decide to walk there. Maybe it'll be a good work-out for the day. After half an hour of walking, I finally made it. I have to admit, my house is kind of big, but it dwarfs in comparison to the Grey house. It's gray and black with so many windows, there's hardly any walls. All the windows are tinted black, though. Maybe it's one of those weird mirrors. Even though I'm early, I can hear music blasting from within the walls and a couple people sitting around the huge living room drinking what seems to be Bud Light. Beer makes me want to puke. I don't know how people drink it. Yes, I accidentally drank beer before, thinking that it was bubbly apple juice. I ended up gagging and coughing for quite a while. I've also tried red wine and those new fruit flavored wines. Ugh, they're even worse.

Right now, I don't really care about being polite, so I grab a plastic cup and go to the fridge and pour myself some grape juice. I'm not touching any booze, hell no. I finish the juice and throw away my cup. Then I grab a water bottle and drink the entire thing in one swig. Ugh, I haven't drank anything today thanks to the whole whitening shit. I feel so guilty wasting plastic like that, but for once I could care less. After literally an hour of randomly drinking anything that didn't seem suspicious or booze, the party's in full swing. I am so not going to dance. All the girls are grinding on the guys. Ah, somebody shield my innocent eyes!

I see Cassie coming up to me with a smile on her face. A toothy grin. Okay.. Wow. She perkily asks me "You having fun, Jenny? Ooh, I'm totally loving your outfit." How fake can she get? I'm bored, so I say "Yeah, this party is soo totally awesome! Thanks for the compliment, yours is pretty awesome, too." No, her outfit sucks. She's wearing a bikini top and three inch long shorts. Disgusting. Maybe guys like her outfit, but I can't stand staring at her any longer. She then asks me "Hey, can you go to the freezer in the garage and get some more beer? We're kind of running low." I pretend to not suspect anything and go to the door in the kitchen that was supposed to lead to the garage. Everybody was staying away from that door for some reason. Maybe it's because it's in the kitchen. I have an urge to go pee now. I really drank too much juice and water! I'm like, about to piss myself, and I'm pretty sure that the stupid prank for me was going to be in that door. Controlling my bladder for a couple more seconds, I cautiously open the door, but I don't go through it. I look up and see a bucket. Through the plastic, I can tell it's blue paint.

This was the best that the girls can come up with? Oh wow, you've got to be kidding me. They thought that I would actually fall for it, too! Oh wait, I remember that I really needed to go pee before I piss myself on the kitchen floor. I look to my left and see some stairs going to the next floor. I have no idea where the bathroom is. Ok, I'll just randomly open a door and hope that it's the bathroom. Here it goes. I walk down the hallway and open a door, revealing a closet that two people are making out in. Okay.. Next door. I get the same result, but this time, it's my sister Gina that's making out with some guy!! He was some random kid with blonde hair. I'm pretty sure he was the cute guy she was talking about. I cough to let them know that I was there. Gina stops and looks like she's about to tell off the person who interrupted her heated make-out session when she sees me. She's frozen on the spot. Then she starts begging me "Please don't tell Mom I'm here!! I'll do anything for you!" Me being me, I said "Oh, I am so telling her, and for once, you'll get in trouble, not me." She glares at me and whispers in my ear "If I tell Mom that you were at a party with orgies and beer, you'd be dead, too." Oh no, the kid's blackmailing me! I cannot fall to my subordinate. Well, she's supposed to be that since I'm older than her.

I step into the closet while that random guy got out. I was fuming mad, but before I could yell at Gina, she ran out, closed the door, and I could hear her locking the door. Oh fuck, this thing got locked from outside, and I can't do anything from the inside! Shit shit shit shit shit!! When I get out of this place, she is soo dead. I'm going to kill that bitch! It's pitch black in here, and I can't see a thing. This is one of the moments when a cell phone would be kind of handy. I could call Nate and get him to get me out of here. Too bad my mom bans me from getting a cell phone until I reach college. She doesn't want me to be "spoiled" and become obsessed with texting. Yeah, right. I really don't like my mom right now. Out of anger and frustration, I kick the wall and hear some stuff falling down. A volley ball hits me in the head (okay, volley balls seriously hate me). I can tell it's a volley ball by the pattern on the surface. Wait, do I see light coming from above?

I look up to see a three foot high window. It's also one of those windows where you slide it up to open it. Success!! I'm getting out of here!! If you're wondering why I'm not knocking for somebody to come save me, it's because of the music. It'd kind of be impossible to hear me, now wouldn't it? I grab a stool and stand up on it. I push up the window and it opens about two feet. That should be enough for me to get out. I grab a what seemed to be sturdy box, put the stool on it, and climbed up. I swing my legs through the window, then I reach my head out. Oh. Holy. Jesus. The ground looks so far away! It's only about 15 feet, but I'm not going to jump down. I'm a roller coaster fanatic, and I go on some of the scariest ones in the world, but I'm afraid to jump. On roller coasters, my safety's guaranteed. Freefalling for a couple feet? Nope, I'll definitely injure myself.

As I look around for more options, I see that there's this piece of material encircling the house that separates the floors. You know those hotels? Yeah, I think it's actually pretty. I could walk on that and slide my way to the next window. So now I'm hanging by my hands from the edge of the window, feet a couple inches from those three inches of land. I steadily land on that with my feet spread out. My toes are facing my left and right as I slowly slide over to my left, towards what I supposed were the bedrooms. I'm hanging on to the flat walls, trying to keep my balance. I get in front of one of those tinted windows, and it's actually open! I am just way too lucky tonight. I slide through the opening, being very thankful that I'm small and skinny. When I finally get my entire body in that room, I look to my left and see a bed.

On the bed was Shane and Angela, half-naked and I assumed that they were making out. Or other things.. I just walked in on Shane while he was about to have sex! Oh. My. God. What the fuck do I do now?? He's staring at me, too. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit.

**A/N - Hmm, that didn't come out as good as I planned, but I hope you guys liked it. Yeah, Gina's a total bitch. It's embarrassing how Gina kissed a guy before Jenny did, isn't it? Thanks for reading and reviewing!! I'm having problems with Microsoft Word and product keys, so I'm using Microsoft Works Word Processor. I hate technical difficulties. **

**I'm having a vote!! What should happen next chapter? **

**Should Shane **

**1) Kick out Angela and be alone with Jenny or**

**2) Kick Jenny out and she finds Nate.**

**It'll let me know if you guys like Nate/Jenny or Shane/Jenny better. If you have any other suggestions, let me know!**


	6. Twister and Finding Nemo

**A/N - Thank you to the few people that voted. :D**

**On to the next chapter!! Btw, I'm like, sleepy as I write this, so if there's grammatical errors, please tell me!**

About five very AWKWARD seconds passed by before Angela was the first to speak up. "Like, you're such a perv!! If you want to see me like, in my undies or something, just go to my MySpace." It takes a couple seconds for this to register in my head, but I scream "Wait, hold up! You think that I'm a lesbian?!" Angela scoffed and said "Well, no duh. Why would you be jumping through windows into Shane's room if you're not?" I am getting really pissed right now. "I'm as straight as a line segment!" I yell. Shane finally decides to speak and says "Wait, what's a line segment?" Oh my God. This kid is stupid. "Don't you pay attention in Geometry?" I ask him. "No, of course not. When do I?" he replied. I ignored this question and reverted my attention back to Angela. "I am not a fucking lesbian so you better get over yourself! And BTW, you have disgusting cellulite" I told her. I'm serious. You'd think that somebody as skinny as her wouldn't have that stuff.

"You did not just tell me that I have cellulite!" she shrieked at me. I guess her weakness is cellulite? She gets up from the bed and walks over to me. I'm so happy that her bra and panties are on right now and that she's not in her birthday suit. You can guess what happened next. She fucking slapped me! What's with all the slaps this week? They're seriously getting old. Before I can go on about her cellulite, Shane yells "Angela, get the fuck out. Right. Now." Uh, why is Shane kicking Angela out? Shouldn't he be kicking me out? This is totally twisted, which I am not, thank you very much! Like I said, I'm straight. "Shaney-boo, we're not finished yet honey" Angela tried to seductively say. She's just getting me sick. I think I'm going to puke out the liquids instead of peeing them out. Wait, I don't have to pee anymore! What's up with my bladder? I guess stress does this to you?

Shane untangles himself from the sheets, grabs some clothes by the bed, and throws them in Angela's face. She looks so mortified right now, and I'm just watching the show take place. Seriously, where's the popcorn when you need it? Whoa, he's only in boxers. BOXERS. I'm too overwhelmed to drool at his six-pack. My poor innocent eyes!! Shane opens the door and shoves Angela out. She's begging him to let her in, but instead he just locks the door and yells at her to leave him alone. "Oh, and by the way Angela? We are through. I'm dumping you. Buh-bye!" he says through the closed door. I can hear her crying while she's probably putting her clothes back on. Okay, more like bawling her eyes out until her body runs out of moisture. I hear some heavy footsteps go down the hallway. I guess she left..

Shane turns back to me. Oh great, here comes the evaluation. Not knowing what to say, I just blurt out "I knew I should've jumped down!! I mean, it's only 15 feet, and the grass didn't look hard, and -" Shane cut me off by asking me "Wait, what happened?" I choose the rough version of what happened that night. "Okay, I drank a lot of juice and Cassie told me to get beer in the garage using that kitchen door, but I knew it was probably some prank, and I dodged the blue paint, then I really needed to pee, then I went upstairs and opened a door to see my sister making out with some dude in a closet then she locks me in the closet and I get out through the window, but I was afraid to jump the 15 feet to the ground since I knew I was going to injure myself, so I slid to the closest window by using those little railing thingies and jumped in" I said all in one breath.

Wow, explaining all that can really exhaust you! He's staring at me while processing this. That stare is seriously creeping me out. "You caught your sister in a closet while in a make-out session?! Dude, AWESOME!" he exclaims. That is so not awesome, and I say "Did I mention she's in sixth grade?" He stops smiling and says "Okay, now that's just sad." I've got to admit it, he's right. It gets awkward again and I break the silence by saying "Well, I need to get out now since it's.." I look around for a clock and see that it's only 8:15. "Only about eight?" He answers for me. He then asks "When's your curfew?" And I answer "Midnight." Why didn't I just say nine instead?

"Looks like you've still got quite some time here" he told me. Yeah, Captain Obvious. I finally ask him a question that'd been bugging me. "Uh, can you please put some clothes on or something? I don't want to see you like that.." He could tell that I was uncomfortable. Being the jackass he is, he says "Nope. Being like this is comfy. But being totally naked is even better.." He reaches to his boxers and looks like he's about to pull them off when I run to the door and unlock it. I hear him say something but I don't hear exactly what he said as I run out the door and slam it shut behind me.

What. The. Fuck. What was he doing?! I run to the next door and open it to see a bathroom. Exiting the bathroom made me feel so much better. My bladder was finally empty. I finally noticed Nate standing there. Wait, how long was he there for? When he sees that I notice him, he says "I just saw Angela getting kicked out of Shane's room. She was crying and shrieking.. What happened?" I so did not feel like explaining myself again, so I just shrugged and say "Eh, beats me." Nate frowns at this and asks "Didn't you just leave his room, too?" Oh shit, he was asking way too many questions. Seeing that I couldn't answer, he continued "I'm pretty sure it had something to do with you, Jenny. Your cheeks were pretty red when you left his room. What. Did. Shane. Do?" He was talking slowly like I was some idiot. I admitted the truth and said "The dude tried to flash me, okay? I've never seen any guy naked and I don't intend to! God, he's so irritating!!" I was yelling at this point.

I continued on and screamed "Nicole was supposed to be here, too, but she's fucking sick! And I just saw my LITTLE sister making out with some guy in a closet. Then the bitch had the audacity to lock me in there! I climbed out the window and used that railing to get to the nearest window, which was open. And it happened to be Shane's. Once Angela slapped me because I insulted her about her cellulite, he kicked her out and then got totally perverted! I didn't know what to do except leave that place!" Repeating all this reminded me just how much I was supposed to be pissed. Instead of asking more questions, Nate said to me "Let's just go to my room and play Twister with Jason." Wait, did he just say Twister and Jason? I was shocked but manage to utter the question "Wait, Jason's not sleeping with a girl tonight?" Nate starts cracking up at this but finally answers "The rumors aren't true. Jason doesn't sleep with girls at parties, it's just Shane." I then shriek "So you and Jason are **virgins**?!" Nate shushes me and whispers "Jason's not a virgin, but I am, okay? But don't tell anybody that. Please. The me not being a virgin.. Guys have egos, you know?"

Saying that I was shocked would be an understatement. I collect myself together and happily exclaim "Let's play Twister!!" Nate smiles and drags me down the hallway to another set of stairs. We climb up and I see a narrow hallway with two doors. I'm guessing one of the doors is a bathroom and the other is Nate's room. As I enter his room, I see Jason setting up the game. After noticing me just standing there, he asks Nate "Hey, who's this?" Wow, that was definitely polite. Sense the sarcasm? Nate just says "Say hi to Jenny." I mutter a "hello" to Jason while he nods in my direction. "So, Jenny, enjoying the party?" Jason asks me. I reply "Nope. Tonight's been not so great." Nate continues for me and says "Not so great as in she's about to kill her little sister and Shane just tried to flash her." Jason looks at me and says "I don't want to know." We all laugh as I twirl the spinner and we start the game. If you guys are thinking to yourself _Where's the sexy typical Twister scene? Why isn't her head in-between his legs?_ it's because we were having too much fun to notice. For once, Twister wasn't awkward and I was laughing. For the first time in awhile, I was happy without family or Nicole. I simply was happy, and it felt nice.

I was surprised to see how funny and down-to-earth Jason was. He wasn't an arrogant jock like I heard, and I'm pretty sure that he's not a walking STD anymore. After playing the game for an hour, we decide to watch a movie, and I got to pick. I chose my most favorite movie of all time, which was Finding Nemo. That movie always lifts up my moods. **(A/N - FINDING NEMO IS FUCKING AWESOME!!)** Once the movie was over, I looked at the clock and saw that it was eleven. I say to the guys "Thanks for hanging out with me and making this 'party' partially enjoyable. I've got to get home." Jason looks bewildered as he asks me "Wait, when's your curfew?" I tell him that it was midnight. Then I added "I walked here, and I live two miles away, so I'm going to need some time to walk home." Nate stands up and says "You shouldn't be walking home alone this late at night. I'll walk with you!" Aww, he's being so sweet.

I smile, but say to him "You don't have to. Green Oak's one of the safest places in NJ, and I might be with that bitch of a sister that I have. 'Night guys!" Jason gets up and gives me a hug, while Nate gives me a high five. I'm guessing he doesn't like hugs.. I wave once more and make my way downstairs. I see that everybody's too drunk to really notice me. That's good, I don't want to experience drama with Angela and her crew of Shane groupies. I walk around trying to look for my sister and finally found her in the backyard, holding a beer bottle. I grab it from her and dump it out to see that it was only water. She says to me "I'm not that dumb, Jenny. I dumped out the beer and filled it with water, and the other guys totally fell for it." Wow, that's pretty smart. At least she didn't drink alcohol. Then she asks me "Wait, how'd you get out the closet?!" I finally remember again why I'm mad at her and flick the side of her head as I say "I have my ways, bitch. Let's go home now." She didn't complain as I dragged her from the back yard to the front yard.

We start on our long trip home. I wanted to walk slow to just enjoy the night. She walked behind me while I walked in front, both of us having a bunch of space between us. I didn't want to ask her to explain. I didn't want to know anything. As people say, Ignorance is bliss. I don't think I wanted to know about her disgusting personal life anymore. When we both made it close to our house, she told me that it was ten 'til midnight. "Wait, how do I get inside without getting in trouble?" she asks me. My window has those little wooden things for the roses and other plants to grow through, with the vines under it, leading to the ground. I told her to climb up those things when I signal for her to do it.

I enter the house and tell Mom that I'm home. She was sitting in the living room watching some Korean dramas. She turns off the TV and asks me how the party was. I told her it was fun and that I watched a movie. Hey, that's not lying. She nods and climbs upstairs to go to sleep. When I finally reach my room, I open up my window and whisper "Psst, Gina. Climb up now." After two minutes, Gina climbs through my window and says "I owe you, okay? I'm sorry for the whole closet thing, and that I sneaked out, and -" I tell her to be quiet. "I don't want to know about your whole personal life. Just remember one thing, though. I'm the good kid in this family, and I could hold this against you for anything." She looked scared as she nodded and tip-toed to her room. I muster up all my strength to brush my teeth and change into some pajamas. I fall against my bed and doze off soon afterwards. My dreams were about Nate and Jason. I don't want to think about Shane anymore.

**A/N - Okay, so I did a bit of both, and I spent over an hour on this. Well, 40 minutes since I had to eat and crap. Ugh, I'm getting tired. Please review! Thanks for reading. :D**

**BTW, anonymous reviews are accepted now. I didn't know that my stories didn't allow that, so I changed the settings. **

**And tell me what you want to happen at school next week. I'm easily influenced.**


	7. Blue Balls

**A/N - Once again, so sorry for always putting author's notes. Blame it on my slight case of OCD. Thank you everybody for reviewing! **

**Disclaimer: (I FINALLY make one) I do not own Camp Rock or any of its characters, and hope that the Jonas Brothers don't hate me for portraying their characters (which would be them if it was legal on FF) in such a promiscuous way. Sorry!**

"Ugh.. Shit. What time is it?" I ask myself as I turn around in bed. I will someday kill my alarm clock. It's noon. Wait, oh my God! It's noon! I never sleep this late! Being the smarty that I am, I have a constant sleep pattern. To get myself awake, I quickly took a cold shower (those things do not feel good!) and changed into workout clothes. I jogged to Nicole's house and her mom invited me in. Nicole looked pretty healthy and was eating buffalo wings. "Hey, Nicole, want to go to the playground and like.. Do stuff or something?" I ask her. She finishes her last wing and says "Sure! I soo want to go on the swings!" Wow, somebody's happy today.

"So dude, how was that party last night? I didn't miss anything, did I?" she asked me as we walked to the elementary school a couple blocks away. I answered her "It sucked at first, really. I ended up despising Gina since she snuck out to the party and locked me in a closet, but I finished the night with Twister and Finding Nemo. Oh, and by the way, Jason's not a manwhore or a walking STD. Who would've guessed?!" I'm still surprised that most of the rumors about Jason weren't true. Girls probably lie about sleeping with him or something.

"You're kidding, right? Did somebody get drugged up?" Nicole teased me. We laughed our asses off as we headed to the swings. Funny how Nicole and I spend our time like we did when we first met each other. It brings back good memories. "Hey, Chink" Nicole yelled to me as we reached our highest swinging points. I'm fine with her calling me Chink, it's what we call each other sometimes. "What?" I yelled back. She replied "So Jason's not a manwhore, huh?" I scream "Yup! He isn't!" I'm pretty sure I could be heard from three blocks away, but I was having the time of my life swinging back and forth. "That just makes him more smexcilicious then!" Nicole screamed out. Whoa, I wonder if anybody heard that word. Smexcilicious is one of the best words I've ever heard. I first learned the word smexci from my friend Chistia. "No, the Grey brothers are handsome!" I belted out. I hate using the word hot. I think that handsome had more meaning to it.

Nicole yelled to me "On a count of three, we jump off!" I whip my head to finally look at her and shrieked "What the hell?! No, remember how Shane broke his arm this way?!" I'm serious. My friend Shane broke his arm three years in a row. At least one of the causes were the deadly swings.

"One!"

"No!"

"Two!"

"You fucking suck!"

"And three!!"

Despite my complains, I jumped off with her anyways. We sailed through the air, twelve feet up. I landed on my side while she landed on her back. "I fucking hate woodchips" I say to her after our gasps started to slow down. "I think I have some stuck in my hair" she says back to me. We both get up and dust ourselves off. "Why did I jump off again" I ask her. "Because we're freakin' awesome!" she replies back. "Dude, I'm hungry as shit, yo!" I said to her. "How about we go to your house and get something then?" she asked me. "Wait, didn't you just eat?" I'm confused. "Well, I feel like eating more. That liquid diet deprived me nearly two days of pigging out" she replied. I walk into my house to get some money and changed into my normal attire and we headed for the Green Oak diner about eight blocks away. Most of the high school kids hang out there.

I smiled as the diner's cool air hit my face. The place is pretty welcoming. When we sit down, a waitress on roller skates asks us for our orders. I get a cheeseburger while Nicole gets a milk shake. "So much for pigging out because of a liquid diet" I said to her. "Well, at least it's got a bunch of empty calories" she replies back. We were still laughing when our "food" arrived. I heartily bit into my burger, not having had a decent meal for nearly two days. Like I said, I wasn't supposed to eat much after the whitening session.

There were only freshmen at the diner today. I'm pretty sure it's because the other students have major hangovers or something. Just as I was thinking this, Shane walks through the doors, alone. Where's a random girl or one of his brothers? Hmm.. Weird. "Ooh, I see Shane" Nicole says. "I'll just leave you guys alone now." She got up from her seat leaving me alone with her empty glass. "Wait, no, don't leave me! What kind of friend are you?!" I loudly whispered to her. She turned to me and said "I have to get home for another check-up appointment with the doctor. Good luck with Shane!" She waltzed out the door, and there I was, stranded.

I think Shane heard me say the last words because he turned to my direction. I couldn't tell what his expression was behind those girly sunglasses of his, but he started walking to my booth. Oh my God, he was walking towards me! What do I do, what do I do? What would I say to a guy that'd just recently tried to flash me? I didn't have much time to think as he plopped down on the seat across from me.

He opens his mouth and says "You know, it's all your fault." Wait, what was my fault? "Uh.. I beg your pardon?" I ask him. He sighs "It's your fault that Angela won't take me back." Whoa, hold on here! That was so not my fault. "How was that my fault? **You** were the one who kicked her out" I bit back. He replied "Well, why'd you jump through the window then?" Did he forget everything I said to him last night or something? I said through clenched teeth "It was either that or jump down and get injured." He rubbed his chin for a bit before he said "So why didn't you just jump down then?" My already huge eyes got wider before I got my special glare on. I have this unique glare that would make anybody's skin crawl. It's all in the eyes.

He started shifting in his seat. Obviously, the glare was working. It always did. "I'm.. really sorry for.. Flashing you?" he said after a couple seconds. "Wait, so why did you try to do that? I mean, not to sound weird or anything, but my poor innocent eyes!" I dramatically put my arm over my eyes." He clicks his tongue and says "'Poor innocent eyes'?" Wait, he doesn't know? "Hold on. You don't know?" I ask him. "Know what?" he replied. "That I'm completely inexperienced when it comes to anything that has to do with sex" I answered him. His eyebrows raise up in shock before he asks me "Wait, so you're a virgin?" I tell him "Shh. Watch your volume. And yes, I am. I uh.. Haven't even kissed a guy yet.." I felt kid of weak admitting this to him.

I awkwardly wait for his response to this confession of mine. He finally says "Wait, so you're a girl, who's 14, that hasn't had her first kiss yet? Oh my, I'm shocked!" How could he be shocked? I mean, I'm kind of a geek or something. He continued "Cuz like, you're kinda hot, and you have a body, but you haven't had your **first kiss** yet?! No, you're lying to me. Quit joking, I can't take it anymore." He was shaking pretty hard now from trying to stifle his laughs. Wait, did he just compliment or insult me? I can't tell. "What's so funny?!" I screamed at him. He quits shaking and gets all serious. "Sorry, I'm just surprised. Everybody's had their first kiss in our school. Well, almost everybody, considering how you haven't yet." I still couldn't talk so he continued on. "I mean, even your little sister already had her first kiss. Making out with a guy at my party in a closet? You'd have to wonder how far she would've gone if you didn't bust her." I so didn't want to think about that, but he was right.

"Don't remind me of my brat of a sister. I really want to get her out of my brain" I gritted out to him. "So, we should do that by getting you out of your house today. How about coming to football practice? It's about to start in half an hour" he suggested to me. Whoa, Shane Grey was inviting me to come to football practice with him. "Will Nate be there?" I ask him. His eyes go dark for a sec before he smiles and says "Yup." Did I just imagine that? Okay.. Very strange. "Gimme your phone and I'll call my mom" I ordered him. Haha, it's so fun to order around Shane Grey. He gave me his iPhone without any reluctance. "How do you use this thing?" I ask him. I had no idea how to use an iPhone! He sighs and tells me to give him my house number. I give it to him while he dials it in and hands me back the phone. I asked my mom about hanging out at the high school with some friends. Of course, she asked me where Nicole was. I told her that Nicole was at a doctor's appointment. After a minute, I hang up and give the phone back to Shane.

"Oh, and guess what? I have your number now" Shane smirks and says to me. Oh God, I just accidentally gave Shane my number. I think that that was a mistake. "Too bad that whenever you might call, you'll have to talk to my parents or my little sister first." He seemed unfazed by this, so I added in "If you're a guy, they'd want to meet you in person." His attention snapped back to me before smirking again and saying "That won't stop me from annoying you with my calls, though." I roll my eyes as we get to his car. He had a black Lambourghini Gallardo Spyder. It was probably the coolest car that I'd ever seen in person. Because of the seating in the car, I was forced to sit next to him, but I really didn't want to. I remembered to put on my seat belt. Shane didn't bother with his.

The real reason why I didn't want to sit next to him was because whenever I'm near him, it's always awkward. I never feel at peace. Never. To break the awkward silence, I asked him "So what was the real reason behind you trying to strip in front of me?" He contemplated this for a moment before he said "Well, I was turned on when I was making out with Angela, so of course I had a boner. But when you came in, I kicked her out. I still don't know why. Thing is, I was turned on and didn't sleep with her, so I had blue balls." I raise my eyebrow in question before he said "That means that my balls hurt since I couldn't jack off." Ohh, that makes sense now.

I couldn't help it. I started hysterically cracking up. "What's so funny?" he asked me. "Dude.. You.. Oh my God!" I continued laughing. "Okay, okay" I started as I calmed down. "Couldn't you wait 'til I was gone before you started masturbating?" I asked him. He answered back "I wouldn't really care if somebody saw me." The awkward silence was back again, but we pulled up to the school parking lot. We got out of his car. Seriously, his ride was tight, but I wasn't sure how much gas it used up. I would definitely buy a hybrid when I get a car. He grabbed his huge gym bag from the trunk and we both walked to the football field in the back. Most of the team was already dressed and was running drills. The coaches rolled their eyes as Shane walked past them into the school to change into his uniform and pads.

I've never been to a high school football anything. Everybody goes to the football games. Well, everybody except Nicole and I. Looking around, I saw the cheerleaders, Morgan being one of them. Oh crap, she looks pissed. I could hear Cassie telling her about how I didn't fall for the blue paint trick they thought they could pull off. I could tell from the cheerleaders' face expressions that I was in for one heck of a day on Monday. I hit behind trees waiting for practice to be over and ran to Shane's car when it finally was. Jason and Nate would drive home by themselves with Jason's car. Of course, Nate wasn't old enough to drive.

The ride home was silent. The only words me and Shane said to each other were the directions I gave him to my house and the goodbyes we shared when we got there. As I walked in, I said hi to Mom and Gina said to me "Wow, nice ride. Who was that?" I ignored her as I ran upstairs to take a nap. I hope she knew how mad at her I still was. I was so not looking forward to next week.

**A/N - Okay, school will be the next chapter, I promise. Have you guys noticed that my chapters are getting longer? :D**

**Review please and tell me what you think. Remember, any suggestions, I'm open for them. Snoopyfulastic's was pretty cool though. ****J**

**I didn't bother to re-read this since I'm too tired.**


	8. We're Friends Now?

**A/N - Thanks to everybody that reviewed! Oh, and when I said that my friend Shane broke his arm three years in a row, one being due to the swings, I wasn't talking about Shane Grey. I was referring to one of my real-life friends named Shane. And that story's true. The dude's weird… who breaks their arm that much? **

**Disclaimer - I do not own Camp Rock or any of its characters. Yeah yeah, the JoBros wear purity rings and blah blah blah. Blah. **

Monday. Today was officially the worst day of the week. Don't you guys hate Mondays? The only thing that I look forward to on Mondays is Monday night RAW, but I'm starting to get tired of wrestling. I mean, it's so fake. John Cena's the most obvious faker. **(A/N - Seriously, look at the You Can't See Me and Five Knuckle Shuffle. He made me get bored of the WWE.)** Twenty minutes later, I was at my bus stop talking with Nicole.

"I'm in for a shitty day" I say to her.

"Is it because it's Monday?" she asks me.

"No. I went to football practice, thanks to you for deserting me. The cheerleaders look pissed" I replied.

"Wait, why would they be so pissed at you? All you did was mess with Shane's hair." Oh yeah! I forgot to tell her!

"That, and I got Morgan suspended when she slapped me and avoided the blue paint trick the bitches tried playing on me at the party" I told her. "Wait, Mr. Wendler did. I was just protecting myself."

"Funny how our middle school lives were totally boring, but now you've got almost the entire female population plotting revenge against you" Nicole calmly said to me.

"Gee, thanks for making me feel better" I sarcastically said to her as our bus pulled up. "Love ya, too!" she happily said as we walked up those stairs and took a seat in the front. A paper ball flew into my lap. I was about to throw it into the wastebasket but decided to open it up. The paper, written obviously in a girl's handwriting, said "Leave Shane alone. He fucking hates you, ho." Uh, last time I checked, Shane didn't hate me if he let me touch his car, and I am SO not a ho. Who the fuck wrote this? Probably one of his female zombie followers.

I'm unfazed by that message as I get to my locker. Fortunately, there was nothing in it waiting to scare the living shit out of me. I was expecting a frog or something. Haha, I would so freak if it was a frog. I've already had nightmares about dissecting those things. No need to have a confrontation. As I sat down in my seat in homeroom, Nate says "Hey, Jenny! What's going on?" He's smiling now. The girls in homeroom are glaring at me in jealousy. All he did was say hi to me, seriously. Nothing big. I answer him "Oh, hey Nate. I saw you guys at football practice on Saturday." He looks surprised at this, and asks me "Wait, how come I didn't see you, and how'd you get there?" I'm not surprised that Shane didn't tell Nate about our small get-together. I answer another one his questions and say "I hid in the trees because the cheerleaders were talking about me and I think that if they saw me, they would've started shit. Oh, and Shane drove me there." Nate breaks the pencil he was holding in his hand. Whoa, does the dude have anger management issues?

"Aww, poor pencil. Only the good ones die young" I humored Nate. He turned to face me and looked me in the eyes. He didn't look amused. In fact, he looked pretty aggravated. "Are you okay?" I ask him. He forces a smile and reluctantly says "Yeah, I'm fine. Totally fine. Never been better." Funny how Nate and Shane get all pissed when I mention to them about the other. At least it's amusing to me. Before I could say anything to him again, the bell rang. Why does it ring at all the wrong moments? I get up out of my seat and head to Phys. Ed. We'd be changing our clothes today. Our district has gym uniforms that consist of baggy orange and green t-shirts and black shorts with the school name on it. The t-shirt has this retarded looking tiger on the front.

I rushed and changed as fast as I could and entered the gym. I was the only girl there. Most of the girls' uniforms are super tight, but mine were kind of baggy. I liked being comfy. Even the sluts could make the uniforms slutty, even if they were meant for being the total opposite. I sit down in my squad with the other guys. Shane walks towards me and sits right next to me. "Shane, this isn't your squad. Get out" I say to him. He replies "I don't feel like it, and you can't make me." He then tries flexing his biceps, trying to look hot. I think that he looks like a fool. I hear some girls giggling when he did this. Oh, finally they come out. They take forever in the locker room.

"See? Those other girls get excited when I do the littlest things. Why don't you?" he asks me. I replied, irritated "Because I actually have a brain. You're just some normal guy, you know?" He sighs and almost inaudibly whispers "At least one girl thinks so." He ruffles my hair as he walks to his own squad. Okay, hair ruffling? It's a step up from flashing me, though. Right? Of course, only I would think that. We were going outside to play field hockey today. We had a choice to either do that, run around the track, or just laze around and talk to our friends. My friend just had to be at the other gym.

I sit down in the bleachers with my chin in my hand, looking majorly bored. I refuse to play field hockey. The sticks scare me and they don't give you shin guards. My shins have been through enough torture for a lifetime. Morgan and her group of friends were sitting by the logs, talking to each other and flirting with boys. Ugh, flirting disgusts me. I was hoping to make those cheerleaders hate me less. I walked down the bleachers and over to Morgan. As I got there, the guys left and Erica and Cassie were glaring at me. Morgan was looking pissed. I breathe in a deep breath and say "Morgan, I'm really sorry for making you miss the party and blemishing your permanent record. I'm sorry that I poured water ice down Shane's head, but if I can't get revenge, I go crazy. This stuff was none of your business in the first place, so stay out of my shit and leave me alone."

Before they could reply to my "apology" and "warning", Shane popped up out of nowhere. "AHH!" I screamed. "Ouch, don't break my ear drums" Shane says to me. "So, what's going on?" he asked Morgan. She smiled, then said "This bitch here just like, totally told me off. I mean, she got my fucking suspended, and now she's all like, it wasn't your business in the first place and stay out of my shit." Shane put his arm around my shoulders, but I shrugged it off. After frowning at me, he says to Morgan "Well, it really wasn't your business in the first place, and it's your fault you got suspended. Leave her alone, she's my friend now." Hold on, what!? He just told Morgan that I was his friend. Wait, am I his friend?

"Uh, I am?" I ask him. "Yeah, of course" he replied. I'm still dumbfounded as I ask him "So getting in your car for a couple minutes instantly means that I'm your friend?" I hear the girls gasp at this as Shane said "Well, yeah. I don't let girls in my car. You're the first." Oh my God! He didn't let girls touch his car, but he actually let me ride in it. What does this mean? "What the fuck?!" Cassie yelled. Erica continued "You let that bitch in your car, but you wouldn't let us?! Even after I gave you awesome head?!" Okay, perfect place to say TMI. "Well, she's not a slut. And you're really not good at blowing" he replied to Erica. She looked horrified as he dragged me to his group of jock friends.

After we stopped walking, I ask him "Not really good at giving head, huh?" He laughed and says "Well, she was the best, but she still sucked." I smirk and ask "Pun intended?" He replies "Definitely." All his friends were looking at us like we were freaks. Shane then said to them "Hey guys, this is my new friend Jenny." I hear one of the guys say "Is she a freshman?" then another one answer him "Yeah" then the first dude saying "Aw shit, then that'd be illegal then." Oh, what? I then decide to speak up and say to those two guys "I'm not Shane's fuck buddy, assholes." The second guy stutters. I guess Shane having female friends that weren't his fuck buddies were a rarity?

I don't talk much to Nicole in Biology and space out in Spanish. I'm still spacey sitting at my lunch table eating with Nicole when I hear some chairs pull out beside us. I look up to see Nate and Shane fighting for the seat next to me. "I was here first" Nate said. "No, I was" Shane yelled back. I decide to end their verbal skirmish and say "Shane, sit next to Nicole." Shane unwillingly does so while Nicole gives me a confused look. I give her the "I'm taking revenge on you" look. Does such a thing exist? I'm pretty sure it does since she gives me a look of understanding. Nate happily takes his seat next to me, but I don't feel like greeting him.

Shane is the first to speak and asks "Are you guys always quiet like this during lunch?" I answer him saying "No, we're just too lazy to talk since you guys are here." Nate then asks Nicole and I "You guys coming to our game on Friday? It's the first of the season." Nicole asks him "Who's it against?" Nate replies "Hartford." Oh, Hartford and Green Oak didn't have a rivalry or anything. Or, at least I didn't think so. Shane then says "We are so kicking their asses." I still don't say anything and continue eating my burger. Ten minutes before lunch period ends, I throw away my trash and Nicole goes with me to the bathroom. I didn't go in there to pee, I went in there to get away from the guys.

"Are you avoiding them, Jenner?" Nicole asks me once we make it inside. I answer her "I guess so. They've both started to act a bit weird." She contemplates this for a while, then points out to me "I think they're vying for your attention." I ask her "Why would they?" She purses her lips together and says "Hmm, I dunno. Hey, we should get to class." I numbly walk to my Geometry class. I was one of the first ones there. After five minutes, everyone in the class was in their seats. Wow, I'm surprised the class is behaving today. The teacher Mr. Edwards is walking around nervously and says to us "Okay, guys. I have this small group project that will be due next week. It's only about mapping your house down to scale, ok? Really simple, to get the gears in your brains working again." Hmm, this project seemed pretty easy. He started reading off the group names, which I noticed were in alphabetical order, and groups of three. He assigned the group one of the person's houses.

Of course, Nate, Shane and I ended up in the same group. Shane's house got picked. Of course he and Nate live together, that's just what Mr. Edwards said. Oh shit, I finally realize to myself. This project doesn't seem so easy anymore. Their house is HUGE. How can we draw that down to scale? I think I'm about to enter hell. Somebody pray for me?

**A/N - That's the easiest Geometry project I can think of. If it was Jenny's house, the guys would have to come over, and that could cause a bit of drama. But Jenny's house is too easy. If I choose Nate/Shane's house, they would be spending A LOT more time together. Wink wink.**

**Please review!! They make me happy and want to update faster/give better chapters.**


	9. Care Bears and Hugs

When we left Geometry, Shane ruffled my hair while Nate gave me another high-five. I could hear them saying that they would "so ace the project" thanks to me. They have no idea how lucky they are that I'm their partner. **(A/N - I hate group projects. In seventh grade, I was assigned one in science, and my partner bailed on me and went out of state for two days, the two days we were supposed to be doing that project. I called in my cousin with three hours to spare and got an A in the end. UGH.)**

I informed Nicole and my mom of this by the time school was over. Unfortunately, I would have to wait while Nate and Shane had football practice, so I sat in the library doing my homework for History and Biology.

I had just started to draw a rough outline for that project mapping their house from what I remembered their house to be when a very sweaty-looking Shane burst through the doors and yelled "IS JENNY HERE?!" The other students and librarian told him to be quiet while I walked out the door with him. I admit, I'm kind of embarrassed. "Don't you know how to not talk that loud in libraries?" I ask him.

"Well, sorry. I never go in the library, I just thought you were there since you're well.. Yeah." I sigh and say to him "I get the point, okay? Let's just go to your house and finish this thing." Once again, Nate was riding with Jason while I was riding with Shane. I was still doing the rough outline as we pulled up in front of their house.

I ran into their already open doors since Nate and Jason were already home. I started walking around the house and adding rooms. After twenty minutes, my rough outline was finished. I guess that's enough for today.

"Hey, guys, I should leave now. I finished that outline for that project" I said to no one in particular. I was about to ask Shane to drive me to my house when Nate showed up out of nowhere and says to me "Wait, don't leave. It's too soon."

It was about 5:30, what was he saying? "I mean," he continued, "You should stay longer so we could all hang out, you know?" Oh, now I get what he's saying. "So, what would you want to do then?" I ask him. He ponders this for a moment, then says "Rock Band!"

Oh my God, I am in love with that game! I do everything. From bass to guitar to drums and yes, even singing, I'm pretty good. Well, mostly in guitar, though. "Wait, you have that game?" I ask him. "Yeah" he replies. Then he says "It's in Shane's room." I didn't really care that he seemed uncomfortable saying Shane's name, so instead I yelled "To Shane's room!"

I ran up the stairs and through the door that I remembered being Shane's room. Shane and Jason were already setting up the game on Shane's 360. I pick up one of the guitars and say "I am so playing guitar. So who's playing what then?" Shane says "I'm singing" while Jason says "Bass."

I guess Nate's doing drums. The drums are my biggest pet peeve. Whenever I play, only half the notes actually go through. I refuse to use the sock mod though.

Nate finally appears in the room and grabs the drum sticks and sits on a chair while the game starts up. I strap on the guitar and we make our own band, which takes about ten minutes. I make my character dress in a bikini top and jean skirt. This makes all the guys laugh. Unlike me, their characters look and dress like them.

Wow, even making a band with them is fun. We finish the first two cities before I saw that it was almost seven. Throughout the entire two sets, I was always the best player with the highest percentage and streak. It's pretty funny that they suck at this game. Shane sings good, just not rock songs. I guess he's more of a pop star? Winky-wink.

I say to Shane "Hey, Shane. I think I should get home now. Care to drive me?" He smiles and puts down his microphone, then says "Sure, yeah. Let's go." I jump on Jason and give him a hug and go to leave the room when I feel Nate squeeze my hand then let it go. That gesture was.. Unexpected.

I yell goodbye to them and grab my backpack and run to Shane's Lambourghini, waiting for him to unlock it. When he finally does, I jump in and put on my seatbelt. Once again, Shane doesn't bother with his, so I reach over and buckle it for him.

"What's up with you and seatbelts?" he asks me. I say to him "Safety first. Some politician in our state got in a crash and went to the hospital because he wasn't wearing a seatbelt, you know?" He scoffs and says "Wow, you're pretty paranoid." I reply "Blame it on mi madre." Shane obliviously asks me "What does 'mi madre' mean?" I ask him "Wait, what language do you take?" He answers "German, what do you take?" I reply back "I take Spanish."

He then asks me "Wait, you're like, a quarter French, right? I'm just guessing because of your eyes and facial features. Why didn't you take French?" Wow, I'm surprised that he's that observant. Only Asians are aware right away that I'm mixed.

I answer him "Well, the fact that French was considered 'the language of love' scared me, so I decided to take Spanish instead." Shane raises one of his thick eyebrows and says "No wonder why you haven't kissed a guy yet." Then he starts laughing. What's so funny? I don't bother asking him since we've already arrived at my house.

Before I could even get out the car, my mom rushes out of the house casually dressed up and yells in Vietnamese "Thao Nhu (That's my Vietnamese name) we're going to Chu Muoi's house for pho!" She might as well should've said, Jenny, we're going to Jen's dad's house for another booze party. Yeah, I have a cousin named Jen. Our family calls me Jenny while they call Jen her Vietnamese name, which was Lan. You pronounce it like lawn.

Then my mom says "You can bring that friend of yours, by the way. He's really handsome." I profusely blushed at this, and Shane gives me a questioning look. I then say to him "Wanna come to one of the HUGE family's booze parties?" He chuckles, then says "Sure."

We follow my mom's car to my Jen's house. We arrive at her house within ten minutes, and Gina and my dad gets out, along with my mom who was driving. Shane greets my parents and says to them "Hello Mrs. Huynh. Mr. Huynh. My name's Shane Grey, I'm Jenny's friend."

Wow, he was actually being polite. Wait, it just registered in my head that he was meeting my parents! After introductions and my little sister telling Shane that he was "hot" we were left alone.

"Hey, let's find my cousin Jen" I say to him. We walk into the house, which was bustling with people. I formally greet all the adults and drag him upstairs to Jen's room. I saw her pacing around in there with her friend Lisa sitting on her bed and her phone in her hand.

"Dave, your fucking mom fucking called me again and fucking asked where the FUCK YOU WERE!" she yelled into her phone. This is kind of normal. Fighting with her boyfriend about his mom always calling her asking her where he is.

She's pretty annoyed every time this happens. Lisa was sitting there, undisturbed by Jen's mood. Both Lisa and I were used to this. "So let's fucking go to that fucking club then!" she yelled into her BlackBerry.

She hangs up and says to Lisa "Dave's driving us to that fucking club." I finally decide to speak up and say "Hello? I'm kind of here?" Jen finally notices me and says "Hey Jenny! Who's that dude?" I answer "Oh, that's my friend Shane. He was driving me home from his house cuz of this project and decided to tag along here."

She gives me a questioning look, then says "Oh, me and Lisa are going with Dave to that club, but you guys can come." I tell her "Uh, you know my mom, and he can go, I don't care. I'll just busy myself with your computer." Shane then says "No, I'll stay with you. I'm not really into clubbing." I'm shocked and ask him "Wait, you aren't?" He replies "I'm not into those things unless it's at my own house."

Jen hugs me then says "Hey, can you keep watch over my room? Make sure the little kids don't get in." She and Lisa make their way out to the front yard. I see Dave pull up. They get in and drive away. Wow, Jen just totally ditched me.

"Did she just leave us alone in her room together?" Shane asks me. I say to him "This is kind of a normal thing for her, but instead of clubbing, it's usually Starbucks. Oh well, might as well go get some food."

I went downstairs alone to get some pho, and avoided questioning looks when my aunts, uncles and older cousins noticed that I had two bowls instead of one. After putting those seasonings in both bowls, I went upstairs and locked Jen's door.

So this was the current scene. Me and Shane Grey eating pho together. He actually likes it! Pho's this Vietnamese dish that's a beef noodle soup. Seriously, it's hard to find an Asian who won't like it.

"So, how common are these family gatherings?" Shane asks me. I answer him by saying "It's more common in the summer, really. During the school year, once a month or so? It takes place at different houses."

We finish our food and I put it aside. "So do you always stay upstairs then?" He asks me. He's asking a lot of questions tonight. I reply "Yeah, I do. If I go down there, there'll be drunk uncles trying to get me to drink some booze, and crazy little cousins trying to get me to play with them. It's better to avoid them all. Unless Jen or my other cousin Tracy is here, it gets pretty boring. And in this case, you."

He grins and asks "Me? So I made your night fun?" I stick my tongue out at him and say "You just made it less crappy, that's all. Don't get so full of yourself."

I get up and go into Jen's walk-in closet. I grab a random purse and bring it back to where Shane was sitting and sit back down. "She doesn't really mind that much if I go through her stuff, and if she does, she's not here right now, is she?" I say to him.

He curiously asks me "Do you always go through her purses and bags?" I answer him "Sometimes, when I'm really bored." I pull out some oil wipes, keys, and then her wallet. I open up her wallet and see about five condoms tucked away in there. I pull them out and show Shane. "She carries condoms in her wallet?" he asks me. I can tell he finds this pretty funny.

"Yeah, Dave makes her hold them for him. When I first opened this wallet, she told me to not freak out, but when I found the condoms, I asked her what it was that'd freak me out. Turns out she was referring to the condoms the whole time, I just wasn't bothered by it" I answered him.

"So she thought you'd flip because you found condoms in her possession?" he asks me. I reply "Yeah, but she should know that this stuff doesn't really bother me anymore. In our circle of friends and family around my age that I've known since I was 3 or so, I'm one of the only virgins. If the other girls are virgins, they sneak out, or other stuff."

He asks me another question. This time, he asks "So just like in school, you're one of the only innocent ones in your family?" I answer him "Well, you could say that. I guess I had a 'boyfriend' before, but I never liked him, and never kissed him, so I don't think that 'relationship' counted, ya know?"

"I agree with you. I don't think a relationship is solid until there's some physical contact. Like, the first step is kissing, and then the other three bases" he says. I continue for him and ask "Touching, oral, then the home run?" He nods his head and says "Yup."

I feel like asking a really funny question, so I say "Have you ever thought about this? When a guy has sex with a girl, the amount of matter his dick took up is totally gone? I read about it in a book." He looks at me like I have two heads, then asks "What the hell were you reading?" I tell him "Brave New Girl by Louisa Luna. Pretty interesting book." He then says "You think up the weirdest things." I replied "Thank you."

I grab one of Jen's pillows and put it on the floor, then I lie on it. "You know, I wonder what Jen's doing right now" I say to Shane. He raises his eyebrows then answers "Well, she's at that club, no duh." I say "I know that, but I wonder if she's still in the car, or if she's dancing, or doing anything else."

He gives me a weird look, then asks "Why would you be wondering that?" I answer him "I don't really know. I'm just worried that one day, something could happen at the club or something, and like, I miss spending time with her. Besides Nicole, she's one of the few other people that I really like to hang out with." I don't know why I was telling Shane all this. I was probably boring both of us to death, but I've never really had a legit conversation with him before.

He says "I guess you feel lonely sometimes. I know that feeling." I'm surprised that he feels lonely, so I ask him "You, the Shane Grey, feels lonely?" He sighs "Being popular isn't all good. You don't know if people are friends with you for the parties, or the girls." I ask him "What about those girls that fall at your feet, begging you to fuck them senseless?"

He answers "When I do have sex with those girls, I don't feel anything. There's no love or passion, just nothing. They're all so easy to get. It's like there's nothing to accomplish with them." I'm pretty sure my face looks pretty curious, because he continues "For once, I want to be in a serious relationship, that's not based on just physical attraction. I want something real."

I say to him "Oh, I get it now. You have sex with girls to try to make yourself feel better about your friends, but all it does is make you feel worse and more useless." He says through clenched teeth "Nice way to put it."

I think he took that the wrong say, so I said "I mean, you're using those girls as a substitute to real friends, in some freaky deaky way. Maybe you should just.. Stop and try to find an ideal girl that's not so easy." He whispers to himself "Maybe I should."

I then say to him "You know, if I feel lonely at Jen's house, all I do is grab her giant pink Care Bear and hug it." As I said this, I got up and grabbed that very Care Bear, then gave it to Shane. "What am I supposed to do with this?" he asks me. Uh, he really doesn't get it, does he? I reply "You're supposed to hug it and be happy."

So he lays down on my pillow and cuddles with it. "This doesn't really make me feel much better" he says to me after a couple seconds. "Maybe you just have to get used to it. It works for me" I say to him. He sits up and gives me the Care Bear. "Fake loving just isn't doing for me, Jenny" he says to me.

"'Fake Loving'?" I quoted him. He replies "Yeah. Sleeping with those girls is false happiness or whatever I want to get out of it. This Care Bear's the same thing." Wow, I never thought of it that way.

"So each time I hug this thing, it's fake loving?" I ask him. He answers "Maybe not to you, but wouldn't you rather be hugging someone else?" I think about that thought for a couple seconds. He's right, I'd rather be hugging one of my friends, not some inanimate object. "Yeah, you're right. Do you want a hug?" I ask him. He answers "Yeah, I'd love one."

So I reach over and give him one of my big bear hugs. As I bury my face in his chest, he puts his arms around my waist. For some reason, this isn't uncomfortable. For once, I don't feel awkward around Shane. Maybe it's because in the end, just like me, he's also a lonely soul, needing more love and attention.

**A/N - Whoo, almost a thousand hits! I'm so happy that people are actually reading this fic. Next chapter will be Tuesday, of course. Tell me what you guys thought about the ending at the end of this chapter. Don't worry, Jenny/Shane isn't definite. But nor is Jenny/Nate. And care to give me some couple names? I can't think of any!**

**I'm trying to make the story easier to read by making the paragraphs more spaced out/shorter. REVIEW!!**


	10. Great, Another Project

**A/N - Wow, the reviews keep coming in quicker and quicker. Thanks for taking out your time to read and review the story!**

Going into homeroom the next day, I saw that Nate seemed pretty pissed. What could be bothering him? As I sat down, I ask him "Hey, what's wrong?" He looks up to me. He has dark circles under his eyes, like he didn't sleep. He replies "You spent an entire fucking night with Shane?" Nate usually didn't swear that much, so this came as a small surprise to me. I answer him "Well, it was an accident, really…. Nothing big." Nate sarcastically says "Sure, not at all."

What's up with his attitude today? Why would he be bothered by Shane spending time with me? Breaking me out of my thoughts, he asks me "Do you want to come to my birthday party?" I'm pretty sure I look surprised, so he continues "Well, my birthday's a week from now, but I'm celebrating it tomorrow, before the first game of the season starts. That, and because it's a really small party. Nobody knows about it except for you and my brothers."

"So, a special little secret party?" I ask him. He answers "Yeah, and you're invited." I yell out "Oh shit, that means I've got to get you a present then!" Mrs. Martin yells at me for cursing out loud. I apologize then revert my attention back to Nate. "Okay, I've got ONE day to get you an awesome present. What do you want?" I ask him. He sighs and says "I'll tell you by the end of the day." I'm pretty broke right now, with only 50. I hope I can buy **Nate Grey**, one of the richest kids in school, something good with that.

"Wait, so you've already decided?" I ask him. He says "Yeah, but like I said. I'll tell you by the end of the day." The bell rings signaling that homeroom is over. I walk over to gym, the class that I have with Shane. As I finish changing and get out of the locker room, I see that unlike Nate, Shane looks cheerful. Hmm, Shane, cheerful?

Instead of fooling around like the other kids usually do, I just sit down in my squad, like **I** always do. Like I said, I'm a good student and don't fool around. Since I had a song stuck in my head, Enter Sandman by Metallica, I didn't notice someone walk over to me. That person sits down and says something, but I don't hear it at first.

Instead, I just whisper to myself "Now I lay me down to sleep. Pray the lord my soul to keep. If I die before I wake, pray the lord my soul to take.." I jump when that person, who turns out to be Shane asks me "Uh, do you have any mental problems or something?"

"What the fuck? You don't just surprise a person when they're in a trance like that, you know?!" I yell at him. "Sorry, I mean, I had to. You sounded kind of suicidal. What were you saying anyways?" he asks me. I answer "It was just a song, okay? You should know it, too. It's on Rock Band."

He looks like he's thinking for a second, then exclaims "Enter Sandman!" I scoff and say "Yeah, no duh. Took you long enough." Then he asks me "Why were you singing it then? I mean, you could've sung other parts, but you chose the creepy prayer." To tell you the truth, I don't know why I sung that.

"Let's just drop this pointless subject. Now, let's talk about Nate's.. party." I whisper the last part. "Oh, yeah. You coming?" he asks me. I reply "Yeah, definitely. Wouldn't miss it. I mean, it's Nate." Shane frowns, then asks "Well, what about my party?" I bite back "I heard it was last month. Wait eleven more months and see."

Today in PE, we were walking through the trails in the woods. I think it's pretty fun, actually. You just have to watch out for twigs and roots that will trip you, and try to not get ticks. Yes, it's possible to get a tick. Just as I was thinking about ticks, I hear Morgan scream "AHH! A TICK! ON MY ARM! AHHH!" Oh my God. That's got to be the most hilarious thing ever. Morgan, getting a tick!

I think this makes up for her being a bitch to me for the past couple days. While Mr. Wendler tries calming her down and sends her to the nurse, Shane runs up to me, since I'm ahead of him on the trail. "Hey, can you believe it? Morgan's getting her blood sucked out! The tick keeps getting bigger."

"Yeah, she's getting that filthy blood of hers sucked out, and I couldn't be happier," I say to him. I laugh and continue walking. Then I remember something. "Shane, why was Nate so pissed off this morning?" I ask him. He doesn't talk for a couple seconds, then he quietly answers "I got home pretty late, because of well, you know. Nate said that he was really worried and shit, so I told him the truth. I was at your cousin's house with you. He seemed pretty aggravated."

After some awkward silence between us, I say "I think he was worried that you got in an accident or got kidnapped or something." He gives me a tight smile and says "Sure, he was worried about me." I could tell he was being sarcastic, but I decided not to point that out.

By the time lunch rolled around, word had spread that Morgan had to be sent to the hospital. Okay, I admit it. I feel bad for her now. But hey, I've seen worse. When I was eleven, I remember this one kid. My sister broke her arm when she was eight, and we saw a cute six year old kid waiting with us in the emergency room. He looked perfectly fine. Turns out, he got a tick behind his ear, and his mom got the body off. The head was still attached and was still sucking blood. Pretty gross if you ask me. **(A/N - True story. Poor dude..)**

I wasn't that hungry today, so all I bought were some curly fries. Nicole on the other hand had buffalo wings (AGAIN) and a whole bunch of other junk. As we were walking to our table, Nate yelled to us "Hey, why don't you guys with us today?" Nicole shrugged her shoulders at me as in to say 'what the heck, might as well' and I did the same.

We walked over to their table and noticed that some of the other guys were missing. "Uh, where's the other jocks?" I ask no one in particular. Shane says "They're trying to see if they could go to the hospital to keep 'poor little Morgan' company." Nicole spits out some water and says "Psh, why would anyone want to visit her? It's just a stupid tick. They probably just want to get the rest of the day off." I agree with her and say "Yeah, you're right. Then they're gonna come back for football practice."

I grab one of Shane's napkins and wipe down that mess Nicole made. Notice how we clean up after each other? Nate asks Nicole "Hey, Nicole. I'm having a really small birthday party tomorrow. Wanna come?" She spits out more water before saying "Uh, yeah, sure. I'll get you a present tonight." I finally say to her "Dude, learn how to hold in your liquids." She sticks out her tongue at me while I do the same.

You wouldn't believe what happened in History today. We're studying Rome and their emperors when the teacher Ms. Thimm announces that we have a project. Another fucking project? You're kidding me! Once I heard what the project was, I wasn't so pissed anymore. I kind of did this in seventh grade.

You're supposed to pick an emperor and write a five page essay about them. Then do a PowerPoint presentation on them. Pretty easy if you ask me. The difference between this project and the one in seventh grade is; you have a partner, and you have to make a skit about something the emperor was known for. In high school, everybody gets partnered by their last name, so of course Nate was my partner. We could pick our emperor, and I instantly chose Nero.

He was known or quite a few things. He was probably one of the most messed up emperors there ever were. He killed his mom, banished his lover, cheated on his wife, and the list goes on. The skit had quite some potential for being a good one.

The due date was September 30th. That gives us a lot of time to do it. Nate leans over and whispers to me "So, what's Nero's life like?" I say to him "Fucked up. Really fucked up. I think this will be fun!"

He looks at me like I'm crazy, so I say "I've already done a project on him, okay? If you're Christian, you might get offended, though." He raises one of his brows and says "Well, I'm Christian. Why would I be offended?" I answer "I remember writing in my essay that he burned Christians in his garden." His eyes got wider in shock.

"So like I said, fucked up. Very fucked up" I say to him. "I'm guessing this project will be.. Interesting. What kind of scene do you want to do?" he asks me. I think about it for a moment, then say "Well, the one where he banishes a.. lover? I think, I don't really remember. She gets exiled because she can't have babies.. I think. Then some people have a protest to bring her back, and she finally comes back. But when she does, he gets some dudes to kill her when she steps foot in Rome. I'm not sure if that's how it goes.."

He stutters "Well, t-that I-is pretty.. Wow, like you said, fucked up." I smile "Yeah, sure is." It's been about a year and a half since I've done research on Nero, but I was pretty sure this project would be easy. Right before football practice, Nate, Shane and I agreed that they would buy the poster board for the Geometry project today, and we would continue with the project after Nate's small party.

Oh yeah, I nearly forgot. I ask Nate "So what do you want for your birthday?" He gives me a cute grin then says "Just bring a formal dress and shoes to school, okay?" What would he need a dress and shoes for? Good thing my closet has a bunch of dresses for me to wear. Then I ask him "You mean high heels, right?" he replies "Yeah!" as he walks away towards the boys locker room to prepare for practice.

Nate's birthday seems like it's going to be pretty fun. I get on the bus with Nicole and tell her what Nate told me to bring. She says "Oh my God, I think he wants Shane to dress in that!! That would be so hilarious!" We both laugh at that. Shane wearing one of my dresses.. He wouldn't even fit. I hope tomorrow won't suck.

**A/N - Ooh, what does Nate have planned? Sorry this was so short. I had terrible stomach pains while writing it.**


	11. NYC, Bitches!

**A/N - WHOO, WILDWOOD TOMORROW! There might not be an update tomorrow, cuz I will most likely be going to Wildwood, NJ. I'm missing freshman orientation, too. I doubt anyone will notice, though. I don't like many people I go to school with, as you guys can tell.**

To tell you guys the truth, I had a ton of dresses at home, and a bunch of cute formal stuff. But for some reason, I called Jen and begged her to drive me to Bloomingdale's. After a couple minutes of trying to persuade her, she told me that her and Dave would be there within the hour. I told my mom that I was going to the mall for a bit, and she was alright with it.

After forty-five minutes, Dave's car drove up and I jumped in. Remember me telling you guys that I had only fifty dollars left? Guess what? I kind of lied. That was the present money. I had a stash of about three thousand in a box in the corner of my closet. It was for emergencies only. For some reason, I took out 600. I hope that Nate had something really good planned.

I got my money from working in a nail salon. Typical Asian stereotype, huh? Working in a preppy neighborhood gives you up to 40 in just tips a day. I knew I had a lot of ground to make up for that, but I didn't really care.

"So how much cash did you bring, Jenny?" Jen asks me.

"Six hundred buckaroos," I reply.

"What the fuck?! What do you need all that for?" she spits out.

"Nate Grey told me to bring a formal dress for his small birthday party," I stated, like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Well, it's a **small** birthday party, why would you need all that?" she asks me again.

"I don't know, I just have this feeling, okay?" I was irritated.

After about ten more minutes, we drove up to Hartford Mall. It was a pretty big mall if you ask me. I ran straight for Bloomingdale's, Jen on my heel. Dave told us he would be at Foot Locker. No surprise there, Dave's a shoe junkie. When we got in, Jen started throwing random dresses at me. I noticed that they were all strapless and short.

"Whoa, dude, these are all a bit revealing.. Not my style," I say to her.

"Try dressing hot for once, dude.. Your mom's hypnotized you into being a total prude," she replies.

She's right about the whole mom part. After fifteen minutes of trying dresses on and off, we settled on a BCBGMAXAZRIA tulle party dress. It was a strapless black dress with an off-white bow around the waist, and had this pattern of three groups of horizontal stripes in the same off-white color. **(A/N - Link SHOULD be in my profile.)**

Jen says, "It's enough for your budget, now onto shoes! I'm so going for Juicy Couture." Jen has this liking towards Juicy Couture. One of her purses are from there. In my opinion, I think they rip you off. We decided on a pair of black peep-toe pumps with a small bow on the toes. I thought that it was actually cute. **(A/N - Link SHOULD be in profile.)** They were a whopping 278. I thought I was going to faint from the price tag. When we bought the dress and shoes, the total was about 560. I forget, the numbers were too high for me. I am so not used to splurging.

Why was I doing all of this? Like I said, Nate would probably make Shane wear all of this. Deep down, I was hoping that my assumption was false.

**xoLAGOHxo**

I fast-forward through the school day. All that happened was that Morgan sported a huge bandage on her arm, and she was making people pity her. Uh, what the heck? Nate and Shane occasionally mentioned the party, but when I asked Nicole if she's bringing a dress to the party, all she said was "They told me to wear normal stuff." That's weird, since Nate told me to bring something formal. Then Nate told me to wear my current school outfit to the party, and that he'd stop by my house to grab the dress and shoes.

I won't even bother placing two and two together, because I am now grabbing the dress which I'm carrying from a hanger, and the shoes, which I put in a plastic bag. There was a white plastic covering over the dress. Jason was driving me, and neither Nate nor Shane was in the car. I gave Jason directions to Nicole's house, which was pretty easy. Jason had a green Ferrari F430. Hey, it was just like the one that Bella had in Breaking Dawn. It was her "after" car.

I was in the backseat since I wanted room so the dress wouldn't get wrinkled. Hey, I paid a fucking large amount of money for this, I'm not letting anything ruin it. Because of this, I wouldn't let Nicole sit in the backseat, so she was forced to sit in front with Jason. She looked pretty twitchy when she was sitting next to Jason. He was her crush, after all.

When we got to their house, Nate told me to go put the dress up in his room. I ask him, "Hey, are you making Shane wear this stuff? Because if you are, it would be so hilarious. Icing on the cake." I added the last part for humor. He smiles and says ,"That's not my plan with it." Wait, so what's he going to do? I wanted to see Shane in this dress, but a part of me was jumping for joy. Maybe he had another idea?

All Nate's party consisted of was a yummy ice cream cake from Carvel and three hours of Rock Band. He was right, this was small. It was fun, too. I would've preferred this over one of their regular parties ANY DAY. Trust me. I was about to leave with Nicole, and Jason was driving again, but Nate told me to stay. "I need to get home, though," I say to him. "I have a surprise planned," he replies. Then he says, "Go up and change into your dress and shoes, okay?"

I grab the dress and shoes from his room and go to his bathroom to change. After five minutes of that, I decided to wash my face and thoroughly brush my hair. I really want to cut my hair, it's so annoying! It'd just grow back after a month or two. My hair grows extremely fast. I hear Nate yell, "You ready, Jenny?" I reply, "Yeah, as ready as I'll ever be." I whisper the last part so he couldn't hear it. I had no make-up on, and my hair was plain and normal. In my opinion, I didn't look so good.

I step out of the bathroom and enter Nate's room. He was dressed in a black tux. The tuxedo itself was pretty plain, but I was surprised at how good he looked in it. I mean, he was so cute! And adorable! I just wanted to go "aww" and take out a camera and snap some pictures. Wow, this reminds me of moms and prom. Oo

"You look really cute," he says to me. How would he know? He refuses to even look me, all he's doing is staring at the floor. "Uh, thanks, you do, too," I reply. He looks up and asks with a smirk "So I'm cute?" I answer "Yeah, cute, like a little kid with pinchable cheeks." He laughs before leading me downstairs.

Jason was already home, and we sat in the backseat of his car while he drove us somewhere. "You're quite the chauffer tonight, aren't you?" I ask Jason. He replies "Yeah, Nate owes me." I laugh at this. After an extremely long thirty minutes, the car stops. I didn't quite notice my surroundings. I was shocked to find myself in New York City.

I give Nate a questioning look before he says, "Remember how my mom is like, a stylist? She's also a clothing designer, too. We're going to one of her fashion shows, then you and I will go somewhere special after that." I manage to say "Whoa, a fashion show? NICE!! I love watching models walk down the runway." Nate raises an eyebrow and asks me "You do?" I reply, "It's kind of hard to find a model with the perfect strut, you know? It's probably the only girl things I'm somewhat interested in watching."

"I'm glad you're going to enjoy it," he smiles to me. I give him a small one back, and Jason says, "Well, I'm going to be off, going around. You know, don't worry about me." I can tell he was trying to get some attention. Nate says "Yeah, I won't. I'll call you when we are gonna leave, okay?"

So a fashion show and then somewhere special? I totally forgot, I didn't tell my mom! "Wait, dude, does my mom know about this?!" I yell to both of them. Jason says "Yeah, our mom called her. Apparently, your mom's a fan of my mom." Okay, I'm kind of surprised. My mom doesn't really like anything.

And now fast forward twenty minutes, and I'm sitting next to Nate with a bunch of famous fashion icons. Oh, my God! I just saw Iman, and she was sitting next to her husband David Bowie. I love his song Suffragette City. It's on Rock Band. Wow, this night is pretty cool so far.

**A/N - What'd you guys think? Was Nate's plan for the formal dress what you thought it was going to be? Lol. Wildwood tomorrow! J**


	12. Bubble Tea and Relays

**A/N - Well, yesterday was Wildwood, and I missed an update and freshman orientation. The beach + Chinatown was kinda worth it. Here's the long awaited update! Oh yeah, I might be gone Monday, too. Possibly Dorney Park xD**

After the fashion show, there was a small buffet dinner that all the models and guests went to. Apparently, Nate needed a date to the event since his mom was hosting. There were people from US Weekly and In Touch magazine to take pictures. Personally, I prefer OK! Magazine since they don't exaggerate all the gossip. **(Has anybody else noticed that? Seriously!)**

Nate stuck with me the whole night, and I opted not to eat so much. I didn't want to seem like some "unlady-like pig" as my mom would call my eating habits. That was the reason why I was still a bit hungry after the buffet ended.

"Uhm, would you like to get a small snack or something?" I ask Nate. He looks at me and says, "Where were you thinking?" I smile to myself, and got Nate to go call Jason so he can drive us there. Within fifteen minutes, Nate, Jason and I were on our way to Chinatown.

"Wait, so why do you want to go to Chinatown?" Jason asks me. I roll my eyes like the answer was right in front of him. "Okay, what am I?" I ask him. He answers "Oh, you're Asian!! Right, now I get it. Still, what do you want there?"

I sigh and reply, "I miss bubble tea." Both guys get quizzical looks on their faces. "It's this gummy sweet Asian drink. I think you guys might like it," I explain. Nate speaks up and asks, "So you made us drive you to Chinatown for some drink?" I answer, "Damn right I did."

Jason obviously knows his way around New York, since we were at Chinatown in no time. He pays for parking then asks me, "So, where's the bubble tea?" I shrug and say, "I have absolutely no idea." Nate yells at me, "What?! How are we gonna find it then?!"

"Uh, walk around?" I say. So I walk away from them and down the street, looking for some sign of bubble tea. I hear them drag along behind me. I pass restaurant after restaurant. I finally see a store with Hello Kitty in the display window. This wasn't bubble tea, but I was hoping it had Nate's present in it. I wasn't sure if he was going to like it, but it would have some sentimental value.

I ask Jason, "Hey, can I borrow five bucks? I'll pay you tomorrow." He gives me a credit card then says, "Spend whatever you want. We're rich, remember?" I smile, as in to say thank you, and dash inside while I tell them to wait for a minute. I get out one minute later with something in my hand. I give it to Jason and ask him to put it in his pocket for me.

I continued skipping through Chinatown, finally stopping in front of a cute little café. I walked into the air conditioned space and ordered three coffee bubble teas. The Chinese meaning literally translated to "pearl milk tea" which referred to the chewy balls at the bottom.

We were now walking aimlessly through Chinatown, each sipping and chewing our bubble tea. I grabbed Nate's hand and laced our fingers together. I loved holding hands with people. It's a normal thing for me, to tell you the truth. Other people find it a couple thing, but I do it too much to think of it like that.

Nate didn't reject the "friendly" gesture, so I started slightly swinging our hands. "Hey, guys, let's go back now. It's getting pretty late." I let go of Nate's hand and didn't pay attention to his reaction. Once we were buckled in, I made Jason turn on the radio.

"What station?" he asks me. I reply, "94 WYSP!!" I always listened to that. If not, then it was Radio Disney. Hey, I'm a Miley Cyrus fan. I just hate those racy pictures of her that keep getting leaked on the 'net. You'd think she'd give it a rest, right?

**XoLAGOHxo**

I am standing at my bus stop, explaining last night to Nicole. I'm also extremely tired and irritable. "Wow, only you would think of Chinatown and bubble tea. What'd you buy at that Hello Kitty place?" she asks me. "Nothing special, really. I started working on it this morning. I doubt Nate will like it, though."

"OHH! I know what you're talking about now! He's got to like it, I mean, it's hard to make," Nicole says. I give her a tired smile as our bus pulls up. My feet are seriously hurting right now, I'm sleep deprived, and the caffeine in the bubble tea didn't help last night. God, I feel like shit today.

After going to my locker, I groggily walk into homeroom. For once, I'm here before Nate was. I start brainstorming lines for the history project. I was tapping my fingers in concentration when I saw Shane barge into the class. He didn't bother to say anything to Mrs. Martin as he pulls me out of class and into the hallway. I see Nate walking up to the door, but Shane tells him to go in the class.

"Hey, can I go back to homeroom? I was in a serious brainstorm for a project right there," I say to him. I am so not in the mood for this. "I just wanted to talk," he defensively replies. Okay, that just made me more pissed.

"Couldn't you have waited a couple more minutes for PE then?" I tried to calmly say to him. "Sorry, I couldn't wait that long to see you." He gives me a fake innocent look. Don't tell me he's trying to act cute. "Well, you saw me, now go away and let me get back to class. It's almost over, FYI."

I start to walk towards class, but then he grabs my arm. I'm about to seriously curse him out! "Look, I just wanted to let you know that you owe me a favor," he says. I stop dead in my tracks.

"Okay, why the fuck do I owe you something?" I ask him. He arrogantly says, "You broke up me and Angela, remember? Also, you guys totally ditched me last night. I was soo lonely." He was being dramatic again. I'm not in the mood for laughs, so I tell him, "That was your fault, not mine. All me, Nick and Jason did was go to Chinatown in New York." That wasn't a total lie, really.

"I know you and Nick went to my mom's fashion show. She wouldn't stop talking about your perfect sense of style last night." Perfect sense of style? My hair wasn't done, no make-up, and I didn't even have an accessory. Uh, huh? Shane sees my confused look and tells me, "She thinks that you have a cute charm to you. And something about a nice petite body and shit, but you'd never make it as a model."

"Lemme guess, Angela definitely would, because she's a tall, skinny, blonde anorexic ho." I didn't have anything against models unless they were divas and obsessed over their weight. That was quite a few words to describe Angela. "Go find some other girl to fuck and quit getting in my face," I say to Shane before the bell rang.

I got in my homeroom, grabbed my books and walked over to PE. Shane just randomly mentioned models. Did it have to do with his mom or something? My already bad mood just got worse, thanks to Shane. He really doesn't know when to shut up, does he?

I kicked lockers as I walked out of the locker room. All the girls were giving me weird looks. Chucks have pretty hard tips, since the lockers made really loud bangs. All the gym classes this period would be in the front today since the back was getting painted. I noticed Nicole walking up to me.

"Uh, what's wrong with you?" she asks me. I glance towards Shane's direction. "Oh, that figures then." I decide to change the subject and ask her, "So, what're we doing in gym today?" She quickly replies, "Relay something. Bikes, scooters, skateboards, then hike through the woods or something?"

It was teams of four people. Nicole and I paired up with our two other friends. Yes, I have quite a few acquaintances. One was a Mexican girl named Aeriell and the other my friend Stephanie. Steph had multi-colored red/brown/blonde hair. Seriously, I wonder how much time she spends each month coloring her hair.

Aeriell was going to do the bikes. Steph volunteered for the scooters, and Nicole was going to do the skateboard. Scooters and skateboards? My school's weird, lemme tell you. That meant that I had to hike through the woods. It was short due to our 45 minute gym period. Approximately six or seven blocks.

Aeriell biked a mile around all the fields, then Steph rode the scooter once around the track. Nicole fell twice on her way around the track. We all laughed, even though she was pissed when she got back. She stomped on the skateboard, cracking it in the middle. "Dude, the school's gonna fine you for that," Aeriell says to her. "Do I look like I fucking care?" Nicole replies. Yeah, pretty pissed.

Our team was doing pretty well. The other 10 or so teams were lagging behind. I was up for the hike through the woods. The thing is about these woods, they're big, and the trails are all within screaming distances from the fields. I was one of the only people walking through the woods. Yeah, walking. Nobody felt like running. We didn't really care who won.

I was still mad about this morning, and extremely tired. I knew I should've had that can of Pepsi! After five minutes of aimlessly wandering around, I noticed that I lost my way from the trail. I cannot function without sleep if you guys haven't noticed yet. I just have the ability to become a total bitch.

"Shit, what direction is the school in?" I ask myself. I trip over a root and fall down. Okay, this isn't serious, all I did was scrape my knee. Then the searing pain in my ankle finally registered through my brain. No, I can't injure myself in these woods! Wait, I can't be too far from the school or anybody else.

"HELP!" I yell out. My ankle was starting to swell up now. I've never injured myself before, ever. Where's ice when you need it? My knee was pouring a lot of blood, too. Crap, this really sucks.

"Jenny?!" I hear someone yell out. "Yeah, I'm right here!" I yell back. I wave my hands, even though I knew the person probably couldn't be able to see me. I saw Shane walking around, yelling my name again. Why does it have to be him?!


	13. In My Comfort Zone

**A/N - MY LAST THREE CHAPTERS HAVE FUCKING SUCKED MAJOR ASS. Okay, sorry for the late update. My brother was hogging the computer, the computer's in my mom's room, and my mom's been pretty sick, therefore going to bed earlier than usual. Which means that I had very limited time to work on the story since I came home from work pretty late. Which means that I'm trying to give you guys a longer chapter with some more.. IDK, stuff? Lol. **

About a minute later, Shane saw me sitting there gripping my right leg, which was really bloody by now. "Oh my God! Jenny, are you OK?!" he asks as he reached me. I tell him, "To tell you the truth, I'm fine." I was used to stuff like this, really. Here's a tip, never play basketball on loose gravel. I got four scars from just one game.

"Well, can you walk? You need to go to the nurse pretty badly." I try standing up, but fall back down again. Ugh, that made my ankle even worse. "Shit!" I scream out. "Here, let me help you," Shane says. But instead of helping me up, he **picks** me up bridal style. "Dude! What the fuck? I can walk, ya know?!" I yell at him. I've been yelling too much today.

"Sorry, you can't walk. I'm taking you to the nurse," he replies. I cross my arms over my chest and stubbornly agree with him. I hate being carried around. It just reminds me of how small I am. "So, is my weight tiring you out yet?" I ask him after a couple minutes. I could see the school now.

"Actually, you're lighter than Angela," he says. I'm pretty sure he's just saying that, since Angela's stick thin. I don't bother asking him about it anymore, though. Mr. Wendler walks up to us and asks us what happened. I'm the one to speak, not Shane.

"I lost my direction, tripped over some root or twig, hurt my ankle and bloodied my knee up. Yup, that pretty much sums it up, Wendler."

Shane let me stand up now, but I could only do so on one leg. Nicole rushed over to me and let me hold her arm for support. "Nicole, escort Jenny to the nurse's office and go back to the locker room. Class will be over in five minutes," Mr. Wendler instructed her.

I saw that I got some blood on Shane's t-shirt, so he took it off. All the girls started "quietly" squealing. I then limped my way to the nurse's office with Nicole.

**XoLAGOHxO **

Here I am, laying on one of those beds that school nurses have. My knee is bandaged, and my ankle's got a bunch of gauze around it. I'd rather be doing this than be in Biology, to tell you the truth. Oh wait, it's time for Lunch now. That's how long I'd been staying here. I refused to go home since I have that project with Nate and Shane.

I heard a person walk through the doors. Probably somebody complaining about a headache. I was surprised to see that it was Nate. Was Nate sick or was he visiting me? I had no idea.

"Jennyohmygodhowareyouiwassoworried!" he let out in one breath. "Wait, huh?" I ask him. He slowly repeats, "Are you okay? I was really worried about you." I laugh and say, "I'm fine, it was nothing big. My ankle got slightly sprained, but it's gonna be back to normal in no time. My knee is self-explanatory."

He smiles and tells me, "That's really good to know. I brought you some cookies, I thought you'd be hungry." Wait, cookies?! I start getting excited over this.

"OMG, cookies! Me likey," I say as he hands me some chocolate chip ones. "Thanks, dude. I was starting to get a bit hungry," I tell him after taking a bite. "But wait, Nate, aren't you missing lunch?" He should've been in the cafeteria right now. "Well, I'm skipping lunch for today," he answers.

"You shouldn't be skipping lunch, you might get tired out at practice," I tell him. It's true, football players need energy, even if the school's food was a bunch of junk. "Don't worry, I'll be fine," he assures me.

"So, any ideas about that skit thing for History?" I ask him. "I don't know a single thing about Nero, and it isn't due for awhile," he says. I guess I shouldn't start worrying about it so soon. "I heard Shane carried you back from the woods," he says after some awkward silence.

"Oh yeah, he did, didn't he?" I reluctantly say to him. Nate got the same aggravated look on his face again. "What's up with that look on your face? I've seen it more than once," I ask him. His expression immediately changes into a fake happy one.

"Oh, don't worry, it's nothing.." I could tell that he wanted to avoid the subject. Instead, he continued "I just hate how Shane's always the guy that girls are attracted to. I'm just the quiet little one. Shane told me that your little sister likes him, too. Sixth graders now?"

I couldn't help but slightly laugh at that. It was true, my sister had a crush on Shane now. The whole other girls being attracted to Shane, Nate being the little one, that was surprising to me. They were both equally cute. Shane was the inconsiderate jerk while Nate was the sweet one. Hmm, nice comparison in my opinion.

"Unlike you, Shane's a jerk, and you're just sweet," I reassure him. He smiles and gives me a high five. "Oh yeah, what up with the high fives?" I ask him. He shrugs then says, "Hugs are overrated." I drop my mouth at this.

"Hugs are so not overrated!" I yell. He gives me a questioning look and says, "Uh, are you sure?" I nod and reply, "Well, no duh. Hugs are awesome. High fives make my hands feel all tingly and not in the good way either." Did I just say tingly? Hahaha, wow.

Instead of saying anything to that, Nate sat down next to me and gave me an awkward hug. Yeah, I said awkward. Now I know why he doesn't hug people. His hugs are painful. "Oww," I say when he pulls away a second later. "Is it your ankle? Do you need help?" he asks me. I shake my head and tell him, "Your hugs are painful. Ouch."

"That's kinda why I don't like hugging people. High fives are much better," he says to me sarcastically. "Yeah, you stick to your high fives," I say. He squeezes my hand before he left. That's the second time he's done that.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I hop into the town's local Staples and head to the poster board section. I get the tri-fold and pay for it with Jason's credit card, then hop my way back to Jason's car. Shane drove alone today since I didn't want to ride with him. Nate being Nate offered to buy it, but I forced him to let me get it. Now I'm wondering why. This thing is huge!

I manage to somehow stuff the tri-fold in the back seat while Nate and Jason sat up front. "Uh, Jenny, that's kind of big," Nate worriedly says to me. "It has to be, your house is huge," I tell him. "Oh yeah, right."

When we got to their house, we spent an entire hour using pencils and rulers to map out their entire house on the tri-fold. We had the basement, first floor, second floor, third floor and finally the attic. I wanted each level to be separated. I sighed when Nate and I finished doing that. "Ugh, hand cramp! Worse than high fives! Argh!" I yell out. Nate laughs at me as he puts the tri-fold away in his room.

"Hey, how come Shane's not doing anything? He's our partner, too," I complain. Nate says, "That's Shane for you. He sucks as a partner in these projects." I reply, "Eh, not surprised there. Try having your partner go out of state without telling you and leaving you with the project alone. With three hours to spare, and you haven't even started it yet."

"That actually happened to you?" he asks me. I answer, "Yep, which is why I totally despise group projects. At least you're helping me, unlike somebody." Nate turns on his big screen LCD TV and we turn it to TLC. "Ooh, Miami Ink is on," I point out. "You watch that show?" he asks me, shocked. "I'm never gonna get a tattoo, I just think that it's cool to watch them get done."

If I ever got a tattoo, my mom said she would "rip off that piece of flesh and throw it in the trash." I'm pretty sure I already mentioned that or something, but that threat scares me. Crazy madre.. Hahaha.

We were on Nate's bed the entire time we were working on that project. I slid off his bed and lay down on my stomach in front of the TV. This girl was getting a music measure thingy tattoo. I think it was the one where they went mobile or something. I heard Nate get down beside me.

He puts his head on my shoulder and says, "Hey, there's gonna be a party tomorrow because of the game. After party to be exact. You're invited." I get up and start playing with his curly hair. Seriously, it's so curly! Is it humanly possible for it to be like this? I've always wondered.

"No offense, but I don't like your booze parties," I tell him. "It doesn't have to be a booze party, you can just hang out up here with me and Jason," he replies. Hey, he's got a point. I ruffle his hair before I got up and grabbed my backpack. "Well, I've gotta go, it's getting kind of late. You know, dinner," I say to him as I open his door. I wave good-bye as I stepped out into the hallway.

Crap, I left my iPod in his room! I turn around to go back to his room to get it, but I see him standing right in front of me holding it. "Missing something?" he arrogantly asks. "Yeah, thanks dude," I say while I took it. "I know you're coming to that party," he says to me before kissing my cheek and walking back to his room.

I could literally feel my blush creep up as I turn around and hurriedly walked down the stairs. I run into Shane who dropped his glass of what seemed to be apple juice. I got a sniff and found out that it was beer. It's not even a party and Shane's drinking.

"Ah, shit!" he screams when the glass breaks into a couple pieces. That's weird, it should've shattered. I drop my backpack and iPod before picking up the five pieces of broken glass and saying "Sorry." I walk to the kitchen and threw it into a trash can. Hope that won't poke a hole in there.

I heard Shane grab some paper towels to clean up the mess as I grabbed some Windex and sprayed it down. Was Windex meant for tiles? I really don't remember or anything. "Wow, so you're a regular drinker?" I ask Shane after we finished cleaning. "Not regular, as you put it, but just sometimes," he defensively replies.

"Whatever," I say as I got my stuff together and laced up my Chucks. "Oh, and you're welcome for this morning, by the way. I fucked up that gym shirt thanks to you," he sarcastically says. "Uh, thank you?" I ask as I opened the door. "Hey, let me drive you home," he says as I walked down the long driveway.

"No thanks, I'll walk home," I tell him. "But wait, didn't you injure your ankle?" he yells since I was getting further and further away. "It's walkable now!" I scream as I walked down his street. Is that even a word? I highly doubt it. I was right, though. My ankle still hurt like shit, but it was possible to walk on it.

Okay, I'll admit it, I had a slight limp, but I didn't really want to spend more time with Shane. I knew he would drink at parties, but the fact that he does it outside of that shit is.. It makes me view him a bit differently. He and Nate are so different from each other.

Speaking of Nate, I could still feel that small kiss. My cheeks flush again. Ugh, I need to stop doing that, my blood's going crazy. But he's so cute! And sweet. And sensitive. And a whole bunch of other things. But he also used to be the kid that cheated off of me, and ignored me since I was a nobody.

Then there was Shane. He was a total jerk, but he was funny. He definitely wasn't sensitive, but I guess he had somewhat of a soft side since he hugged me like that. Like I said, they're both so different. Shane gave good hugs, and Nate's were painful. Seriously, they hurt. Ouchy.

"I LOVE HUGS!" I scream as I walk up to my house. I unlock the door and rush upstairs to start my homework. I had just started when I heard a tapping on my window. Wow, that's strange. I walk up to it to see Nate hanging onto those vines. I immediately opened the window and helped him in.

"Ow!" Nate yelps as he fell to the carpet floor. "Jenny, is everything alright in there?!" I hear my mom yell from the kitchen. I stammer for a second before yelling to her, "Yeah, everything's fine! I just fell, that's all!" There was some silence before she said, "You're going to injure yourself one day!" That day would be today. Yay sprained ankles! Psh, yeah right.

"Dude, what the fuck are you doing here?" I quietly ask him after closing and locking my door. "I kind of followed you home," he admits. My eyes go wide in shock. "No, no, I'm not a stalker!" he defensively says. "I don't think you're a stalker, but why would you follow me home?" I ask him.

He shrugs then asks me, "Can I stay the night?" What the heck is he talking about? After a minute of me not saying anything, he continues, "Please, I don't want to be at home right now. It's nothing serious, how about we work on that History project?" I just noticed that he had changed his clothes. "Wait, why would you want to sleep over?" I apprehensively ask him.

"Shane invited some friends over, and the living room's turning into some messed up booze party, and I don't want to have a bad night since the game's tomorrow," he says.

"This is a bit fast for the friendship, isn't it?" I ask him.

He stutters before explaining, "I'll sleep on the floor if you want, please, just don't make me go back there."

I continue asking questions. "Aren't you used to those parties?"

"Well, they're usually on weekends, not right before a game," he continues.

"But you're on the third floor," I keep pushing.

"I can still feel the vibrations from the music," he says.

"What about dinner?" I ask.

"I'll take the leftovers," he replies.

Wow, he's pretty determined to stay here. "And tooth brush and pajamas?"

"All in my back pack that's currently in your backyard."

Oh shit, I've gotta get that out of there. I tell Nate to wait as I rush downstairs to the backyard. I grab it and rush upstairs again. I had to go through the sunroom to avoid my mom. After a minute, I was back in my room to see Nate looking at my desk. Oh crap, he saw what I was making him for his birthday!

"Hey, you're folding one of those 500 piece swans?" he asks. I had just started forming the base around it. "Uh, yeah, I just bought it at this Japanese outlet," I say. "Cool to know you do this in your spare time," he tells me. He thinks it's cool? That means that the swan would've been a good present. But it was spoiled now! What else can I get him?

"Jenny, dinner time!" I hear my mom yell. My dad had just came home. "I'll make sure to get you something, okay? It might be some Vietnamese stuff that you won't like, though," I tell Nate. "Anything will be good, now get to dinner," he replies. I smile at him before walking downstairs to eat.

Oh God, tonight was rice with spinach soup. My mom can actually make spinach taste good, but I wasn't sure if Nate liked veggies. After dinner was over, I sneakily scooped some rice into a bowl with the soup, grabbed a spoon, and tip-toed up the steps. Luckily, nobody was suspicious. Once again, I locked my door before I sat down next to Nate.

"Uh, what's this?" Nate asks me. I answer, "My mom's yummy rice with spinach soup. It's good!" He eats a spoonful and tells me, "Wow, this **is** good. Spinach, though?" I laugh before saying, "She can make any veggie taste good." It was true, my mom was an awesome cook. **(A/N -Remind you of anyone else's mom in uh.. Camp Rock? I'm not lying either, my mom can make pumpkin yummy..)**

Nate finishes up within a couple minutes. I put the bowl down by my desk, not bothering to put it in the sink in the kitchen so it won't raise suspicion. I printed out the Geometry worksheet from Mr. Edwards' webpage and got to work on it. Just like he did in middle school, Nate copied some of my work. He'll never stop doing that, will he?

We worked on that swan for a bit. Nate wasn't really good at folding the paper, so I folded while he assembled it. We didn't talk much while doing this. Everybody else in the house was already in bed, even though it was only nine. I put away the swan before turning off the lights. Nate and I brushed our teeth together.

Of course, I took a much longer time than he did. Hey, I was a teeth perfectionist. After gargling, we sneaked back to my room. "Hey, we should change into our pajamas now," I say to him. "I'll change in here while you change in your closet," he awkwardly tells me. His cheeks were turning a bit red. "Okay, sure thing," I reply as I walk in my walk-in closet. I was wearing my Kingda Ka t-shirt and baggy plaid pajama pants.

All Nate was wearing was a beater and a pair of boxers. "You sleep in your boxers?" I ask him as I get out an extra blanket from my closet. "Most of the time," he replies. Hopefully the other times, he wears some pants or something.. Right?

"You can get the bed tonight, and I'll take the floor," I tell him. He objects to the idea. Of course he would, he's too polite. I just tell him, "You're the guest, you get my bed." He awkwardly slips into my bed while I grab one of the pillows and set it up with the blanket on the carpet next to the bed.

We say goodnight to each other and I try to sleep. That's the thing, I can't sleep. If none of you guys know yet, floors are uncomfortable to sleep on, and I was used to my bed. I would so not be able to sleep tonight. After an hour, I get up and angrily rip the blanket away from my body. I could see that Nate was still awake as I stood up.

"Why aren't you asleep?" he asks me. I tell him, "The floor's not that comfy." He sits up in my bed then asks, "Do you want your bed back? I'll take the floor." Ugh, he's too polite. "No, you keep the bed. I'll find somewhere to sleep around here."

I can try the bean bag chair since it was the only other piece of somewhat sleepable furniture. I grabbed my blanket and sat in the bean bag chair. I covered myself in it as I tried to sleep. I can't sleep like this either. I angrily get up, AGAIN. "This isn't working out," I say to Nate. "I can't kick you out of my bed, but I can't get a fucking wink of sleep. ARGH!"

"We can both take the bed, ya know?" Nate says like it's the most obvious thing in the world. Okay, so my bed is queen-sized, but I'm not getting into bed with a GUY, even if it's Nate, and we'd just be sleeping. No, not gonna happen.

"That is not gonna happen, dude. Cuz well, you're a DUDE," I tell him. "You're seriously too shy," he says to me. "You're one to talk," I bit back. That wasn't really true, though. He wasn't so shy anymore. I mean, that kiss today proved it.

"You know what? Fine. I'm tired, I need my sleep, I hardly got any last night, and I'm too tired to care. Did I mention I'm tired?" I ask him. He nods as I sit in bed next to him. "Okay, move over, and face the other side," I tell him. This is so not comfortable.

He willingly does so as I face the opposite direction from him. What's wrong with me? I'm too prude-ish to have even kissed a guy before, but Nate's in my bed with me? I'm just gonna try to sleep..


	14. Whoa, Didn't See That Coming

**A/N - Thanks to everyone who reviewed! I hope this chapter will turn out long, too. Oh, and if the text is underlined or italicized, like everything, it's not my fault. I'll try to fix it ASAP. Fanfiction's just sucking major butt right now. I'm also seriously sick with a sore throat and other stuff. Most likely no Dorney tomorrow.**

I woke up to the very unpleasant noise of my alarm clock. I had set it thirty minutes early the night before, so it was 5:30. I quickly shut off the annoying device. That's when I noticed the arm around my waist.

I turned around in my bed to see Nate extremely close to me. I almost let out a small shriek before I remembered that I didn't want to wake my parents up. I gently untangled his arm from me and put it by his side and got up from the bed.

What the hell? He was tugging on my shirt. "No, don't go," he quietly mumbles. Was he awake? He got quiet again, but still held onto my shirt. This is so annoying! I try to pry his fingers from my shirt, but he's got a tight grip on it.

I don't feel like being gentle anymore, so I roughly pull his hand from my shirt and he bolts up from the bed. "Oh my God, what happened?" he asks me. "Oh, nothing, you just wouldn't let go of my shirt. Oh, and BTW, you sleep talk."

He looks down and blushes at this. "Do I really sleep talk?" he asks me. I contemplate that thought for a moment before saying, "You said something like 'no, don't go' a couple minutes before, so I'm not really sure." He purses his lips together then tells me, "Oh, it was just a dream."

A dream? And he was saying no, don't go? Hmm.. Must be some dream. "Do you want to talk about it?" I ask him. He shakes his head and replies, "No, it was nothing. Trust me." I warily say an "OK" before grabbing my BLG tank top and some jeans. I went into my closet and grabbed the undergarments before going to the bathroom.

Within fifteen minutes, I was dressed in my clothes and was brushing my now damp hair. I walk back to my room and saw that Nate was already dressed with a dress shirt and skinny jeans. "You're not gonna shower?" I ask him. "Nah, I'll do it right before the game," he tells me. I nod and put my papers back in my back pack. He goes and brushes his teeth.

Afterwards, we both sat awkwardly on my bed. "My bus gets here at seven, so we have about an hour to spare," I tell him. "What do you want to do 'til then?" he asks me. I shrug and say, "I don't really know. Why'd you pick my house to stay at?"

It takes him a bit of time before he finally answers me. "My other guy friends are on the team, they would've thought that I was a wimp. You're my closest friend that's a girl."

"That's a shocker," I say. "That you're one of my closest friends?" he asks. "Well, yeah. We just started talking about a week ago," I reply. "A week can change a lot, you know?" he says. I nod and lay on my bed.

"Well, we've always known each other. We just never bothered to talk to each other," I point out. "Except for the times that I would cheat off of you in class," he adds. We both lightly laugh at that, making sure to not cause much noise.

"Nate, I think something's wrong with me," I say. He lays down beside me before asking, "What could possibly be wrong with you?" I sigh, "Two weeks earlier, if you climbed up to my bedroom window asking to stay, I would've pushed you down and locked the window, but I actually let you come in, and stay. I'm going insane."

"Wow, I feel so appreciated," he playfully says. I lightly smack his arm before saying, "You know, you're a pretty chill dude. I'm wondering why it took me so long to see that." He turns and faces me. "It was my fault, really. I had a lot to live up to, the name of my older brothers. I'm really sorry."

He shouldn't be saying sorry for ignoring me since I wasn't popular. It wasn't really his fault. "It's not your fault. It's nobody's fault. Let's just leave it at that. We're friends now, and that's all that matters," I say, trying to lighten up our moods. "Yeah, we're friends," he whispers. Shouldn't he be happy that we're friends? He sounds disappointed.

"Are you alright?" I ask him. He gives me that fake happy look again. "Yeah, I am. I mean, I'm laying right next to you, and we're in your room, and it's early in the morning. I was surprised that you let me sleep over. Oh, and sorry about this morning." What would he be apologizing for? He didn't do anything bad this morning.

I gave him a confused look, so he went on, "I know how you're uncomfortable being close to guys like that, and this morning.. I'm pretty sure I was in your comfort zone, right?" I nod my head. "My parents being away so much, my friends being fake, and my brothers being popular, I just feel lonely sometimes. A legit friend helps. I guess that's why I unconsciously hugged you." Nate felt lonely, just like Shane did. I guess being popular didn't have so many perks.

"Yay, you're my amigo now, and that's really saying something," I cheer. He asks, "Doesn't amigo mean friend?" I smile and reply, "No, it's more than that. It means friend for life. Let's be friends for life." I hold out my pinkie and we pinkie swear on it. Nate laughs, "Wow, I feel like a little kid again."

**XoLAGOHxO**

Nate decided to go back to his house instead of going on my bus. Apparently, he didn't want Shane to be suspicious. I guess Shane will never find out about our night together. I think Nate and I had a quiet agreement that we would keep last night a secret, so I don't tell Nicole about it in the morning. "OH MY GOD, I'M SO PSYCHED! THE GAME'S TODAY! AAHHH!" is the first thing Nicole says to me this morning.

I can't believe it, I'm actually excited for the game, too. "AHHH!!" I scream along with her. "Oh yeah, you're gonna go to the after-party. Nate just told me about it yesterday," I tell her. "Finally, I can go to one of those parties! And I'm not sick today, thank goodness," she exclaims. Finally, I wasn't going to a party alone. Last week's party was horrible, except for the Twister and Finding Nemo.

At school, all the kids were psyched about the game, and it was the only thing people talked about for the whole day. I had asked my mom that morning if I could go to the game and the party afterwards, and this time, she told me to be home by one. No problem. I also made sure to sneak into Gina's room and tell her to not follow me again. I don't want a repeat of last week.

**XoLAGOHxO**

Green Oak beat Hartford 36-9. Oh yeah, Green Oak totally owned the game. I have no idea how you play football, or how the scoring system works. I'm not a sports fan or anything. I was just glad that I wouldn't be alone at the after-party.

Shane hurt his shoulder a bit in the game, but it was nothing serious. It was serious enough that he wouldn't be sleeping with any girl that night, though. I noticed that during the parties, none of the brothers are ever downstairs supervising people. I guess everybody's just so used to it.

Jason and Nicole were in his room playing DDR while me, Shane and Nate were in Shane's room playing Rock Band. Wow, we play Rock Band together a lot, don't we? We were in quick play mode. "Hey, Nate, let's have a guitar battle," I say to Nate. He gives me an amused look before saying, "Uh, sure, hand me one of the guitars." Shane painfully gives Nate the extra guitar while I pick a song. "Hmm.. What song should I pick? Ooh, I know! Tom Sawyer!"

I loved that song. It's fun to play on every peripheral. I totally pawned Nate in the guitar battle. Have you guys ever noticed that the Rock Band guitar is so much suckier than the Guitar Hero one? I'm being serious here. **(A/N - I just broke the whammy bar on mine the other day.. I need a new guitar if I want to score higher points.)**

Shane laughs, "You just got your ass kicked by a girl!" He was right. Nate just got his ass handed to him on a platter by me. LOL. "Man, shut the fuck up," Nate grumpily says to Shane. I'm still laughing as we turn off the game. Shane falls down on his bed. "Ow, my shoulder, it hurts," Shane mumbles through a pillow.

"Dude, just try and sleep, okay?" I tell him as I pull Nate out of his room with me. "Let's go up to my room," Nate says. Instead of saying anything back, I dash up to his room and plop myself on his king-sized bed. His room is so much bigger than mine. His entertainment system is so cool. I love his dark blue walls.

Nate was still pretty sweaty from the game. I started channel surfing while he took a shower. I'm laughing at an old rerun of Full House as Nate emerges from his bathroom. He was dressed in his pajamas, but he was still pretty wet. "Dude, this is so hilarious," I tell him as he sits down next to me. It was the episode where either Alex or Nicky learned to crawl, but they refused to do it whenever Jesse was around.

We were laughing throughout the entire episode. I remember a couple years back when I was obsessed with Full House. I turn off the TV when the episode ended. "Hey, what time is it?" I ask Nate. He looks at the clock on the wall and tells me, "It's ten thirty." I've still got quite some time left here. "My curfew is one," I say. "What do you want to do 'til then?" he asks.

Seriously, what is there to do? "How about sleep? I didn't really get much sleep last night." Yeah, thanks to you-know-who. He smirks before turning off the lights. He sets his alarm for twelve. "Do you want to sleep alone?" he asks. This was a bit of déjà vu. Instead of wanting to sleep alone, I surprise both of us and say, "No, please stay."

"Okay.. Sure," Nate says as he slips into his bed with me. "I wonder what's going down at the party right now," I wonder out loud. "You know, never mind. I'll catch up on sleep this weekend. Let's go downstairs," I continue on. I drag Nate off the bed and down the stairs. When we reached the living room, I saw that all the girls were grinding on the guys to the music.

Nate and I weaved our way through the crowd, guys shouting drunken congratulations to Nick about the game. We got to the back, which didn't contain anybody. I guess everybody was busy dancing or whatnot. I saw a fence and a locked gate, and I wondered where it lead to. "What's that fence hiding?" I ask Nate. He turns to me and replies, "It's the pool. Unless it's a pool party, people are forbidden to go in there. That's why we've got the fence and everything."

Nate went to an inconspicuous rock and lifted it up, revealing a pair of keys underneath it. He took the keys and opened up the gate. He put the keys back under the rock and lead me through the gate. After walking for a couple seconds, I could see the pool. It wasn't huge or anything, but it was definitely not small. There were lights on the walls of the pool. It had two diving boards. It was so pretty..

"Wow, nice pool," I mutter. "Thanks," he replies. I walk toward the shallow end of the pool. I felt Nate push me in the pool. After spitting out some of the chlorinated water, I yell, "Dude, what the heck was that for?!" Instead of saying anything, he laughs and jumps in with me. I couldn't help it. Even though I was soaking wet with my clothes on, I laugh along with him.

We splash each other for a bit before I started to float on my back. Except for the distant bass from the music, everything right then just felt peaceful. I felt Nate grab my hand, and I stood upright again. "Nate, we should go check on Shane," I say to him. He nods and we swim to the edge and climb out.

"Wait, how do we get dry?" I ask him. My shirt would dry fast, but I was wearing jeans. Those took **forever** to dry. "Uh, I think that you would have to change your clothes," he says. What could I change into? I don't have a spare outfit anywhere. "You can change into some of my shorts, and my tight shirts might fit you," he rambles. "Sure, that sounds good," I tell him. He lets out a breath then says, "Let's go see Shane."

Of course, before we went to see Shane, we had to change our clothing. I put on a pair of Nate's work-out shorts and one of his so-called tight t-shirts. It was plain black, and fit loosely on me. When we entered Shane's room, we saw that he was awake, and he was rubbing his shoulder. "Hey, where's the chicks?" I playfully ask him. "Ha ha, very funny," he sarcastically replies.

"Uh, how are you feeling?" Nate asks him as I sit down on the carpet. Shane snaps, "How do you think I'm fucking feeling? This shoulder's being a bitch." I couldn't help it, I started giggling. "Hey, what's so funny?" he asks me. I manage to control my giggles enough to say, "You're such a girl when it comes to pain. Even I take it better than you do." That was true. My ankle still hurt, but was I complaining? Nope, unlike some guy..

He sticks out his tongue at me. Wow, that was totally immature. He gets up from his bed and pokes my side. That just makes me laugh more since I'm extremely ticklish. "Jenny, are you okay?" Nate asks me. I manage to utter, "I think I need to go to a mental institution."

After a couple seconds, I stop laughing altogether. "Okay, I am seriously hungry. You guys got any grub?" I ask both of them. They both shrug their shoulders. "Hey, how about we go to that diner?" Shane suggests. Then he adds, "I'll drive us there. Let me go grab my wallet." Wow, I wonder why I didn't think of that. "I'm gonna go ask Jason and Nicole if they want to come, too," I tell them as I open Shane's door.

I walk over to Jason's room and open his door. I don't think that I'd need to knock. What awaited me on the opposite side of the door was something that I was definitely not expecting. "Oh, I'm sorry!" I say as I turn around, my back facing his room. He and Nicole were just in a heated make-out session. Okay, can you guys say gross?! I do not want to see my best friend making out with anybody. UGH.

I hear them trying to straighten out their clothing and crap. I turn around and see their faces extremely flushed. "Was I interrupting something?" I sarcastically ask them. Nicole shakes her head then says, "No, of course not Jenner." Yeah, right Nicole. I've known you for eight years, I should know when you're lying. "So, you guys hungry or anything?" I ask them. Jason answers, "No, we're not." I just think he wants to go back to sucking face with Nicole, but whatever.

"Jenny, what are you wearing?" Nicole warily asks me. I simply reply, "Nate's clothes." My hair was still a bit wet, too. They both had shocked looks on their faces when I closed the door. Wow, now that was funny. I walk back to Shane's room and tell the guys, "Jason and Nicole are a bit.. Busy. We're gonna be dining alone tonight. Let's go! My stomach's about to eat itself!"

The three of us rushed downstairs and were about to get out the door when a tipsy Angela blocked our way. "Excuse me, but we need to go," Nate tries to politely say to her. She flips him off then turns to Shane. "You fucker, I fucking hate you, you suck, you'll never find another fucker like me," she slurs. I don't think she's tipsy anymore. She just seems flat-out drunk.

I grab Shane's arm and drag him out of the house, away from Angela. "Told you she won't take me back," he says to me. I reply, "I'm wondering why you'd even want her to." Shane unlocked his Lambourghini and the three of us jumped in. Now we were off to the diner, away from that party. After a couple minutes, we pulled up to it. It was almost twelve by now.

I ordered a bacon sandwich while Shane and Nate got cheeseburgers. Yum, I don't know about you guys, but I love eating bacon. We didn't bother to talk while we ate. After about two minutes I finished my sandwich. Shane and Nate were about halfway through their burgers. Nate swallowed his bite, then says, "Wow, Jenny. You didn't eat like that in New York." Shane was the one sitting next to me in the booth, and I felt his body go rigid.

"This is what happens when I'm seriously hungry and my mom isn't there to lecture me about having good eating habits and shit," I tell him. Seriously, don't mess with me when I'm hungry. "I admit it, my mom's right when she says that I eat like a pig when I'm hungry or pissed," I explain. Nate chuckles a little.

"Wait, you eat when you're pissed?" Shane asks me. "Well, what do you guys do when you're pissed?" I ask back. Nate says, "I try playing my guitar." Nate plays guitar? I never do that. Then Shane says, "Well, I do the same thing. That, and girls." Oh, that's self-explanatory then.

Nate says to me, "Well, I guess you don't get pissed that often because you're skinny." I scoff then tell him, "No, it's the fast metabolism that I was gifted with." We both laugh at this. I felt somebody tug my hair. I turned around and saw Shane sniffing my hair. "Your hair smells like chlorine, why?" he asks me. I wanted to ask Why were you sniffing my hair? but I decide to politely answer him, "Ask Nate."

He gives Nate a questioning look. After a couple seconds, Nate says to him, "I pushed her into the pool. I mean, we were only fooling around." Shane's body tensed even more this time. "Fooling around?" he asks Nate. Nate got that "oh shit" look on his face. I decide to intervene and tell Shane, "It was nothing, really."

It might've been my imagination, but I think I just saw Nate frown when I said that. "Oh, okay. That's good then," Shane says, relief clearly evident on his face. He looks at me then says, "Oh yeah, Jenny, you still owe me that favor." I roll my eyes at him. It was not my fault that Angela wouldn't take him back. All he had to do was kick me out. That was like, what, a week ago?

Nate asks Shane, "Why would she owe you a favor?" Before Shane could reply to Nate's question, I say, "Okay, fine, I'll do your Geometry homework for a month." Shane laughs before saying, "Nice suggestion, but that's not what I was going to ask you." Wait, it wasn't? "Look, you're not getting two months," I tell him.

This just makes Shane laugh more, and adds to the confusion on Nate's face. "He says that I owe him something 'cause Angela won't take him back. Not my fault," I try explaining to Nate. Shane stops laughing and says, "No, it was totally your fault. You chose to jump into my window instead of jumping down to the ground." Ugh, arrogant bastard.

"Okay, what do you want then?" I impatiently ask him. He clicks his tongue, smiles at me, then says, "Go ice skating with me." I start stuttering before Nate decides to speak up for me.

"No," he says. I could tell he was pissed off.

"What do you mean 'no'?" Shane asks Nate.

Nate replies, "No, as in she's not going with you."

"Who said you could choose for her?" Shane bit back.

"I do, and I say that she can't go with you. I won't let her," Nate grits out through clenched teeth.

"Hello? I kind of exist," I tell them. "Ice skating sounds fun."

Both guys look at me in shock at my answer. "Nate, you can't decide what I can and can't do," I tell him. "And Shane, like I said, ice skating sounds fun." I smile at both of them as a waitress hands Shane the check. He gives her his credit card. "Wait, on one condition," Nate says to me and Shane. Ugh, come on!

"I get to come with you guys, and so does Nicole and Jason," he says. Hey, that doesn't sound bad. "Cool, that's awesome! Call me and tell me the date," I tell them. "I'm gonna walk home, you guys go on right ahead." Before they could say anything else to me, I was already out the door and I was jogging home. I still couldn't shake thoughts about Shane's tense body and Nate's bossiness.

**A/N - So, did you guys like that? Make sure to tell me! Are Nate, Shane and Jenny moving along too fast? How about Nicole and Jason? Should I tone it down or heat it up?**


	15. Another Sick One

**A/N - Thanks everyone for the reviews! You guys are awesome! Oh, and if you guys have MySpaces, feel free to add me or anything. I love talking to new people. And congrats to starfly20 for being my 100th reviewer!**

My mom didn't really ask me any questions last night about my clothes, she just told me to go to bed. As I woke up this morning, I realized that I was still in Nate's clothes. Mmm, they smell like him, too. Whoa, where did that come from?

I have to go back to that house again. Mainly because of the project, and I need my favorite beater and my jeans back. Come on, who can resist Boys Like Girls? I'm about to walk over to their house, but when I open the door, I saw that Nicole was about to knock on it. We both crack up at this.

"Wow, hey, what's up?" I ask her. We both walk down the drive way, Nate's clothes in my arms, neatly folded up. "I dunno, I wanted to talk to you about last night," she hesitantly says. "Well, I'm about to head to their house, wanna come along?" I ask her. She smiles brightly before saying, "Yay, I mean, yes!"

After five minutes of walking, I finally mention last night to her. "So, you and Jason? What's the current status?" She shrugs before telling me, "I don't really know yet, but he's an awesome kisser." She gets a dreamy look on her face. Okay, it's not cute anymore. It's almost gross.

"What's up with everybody kissing guys except for me? My lips need to lose their virginity!" I exclaim. "Oh wait, that came out wrong," I correct myself. We both start laughing hysterically, and have to stop walking. "It'll happen one day," Nicole reassures me after we calm down and start walking again.

"You know, I highly doubt it. I mean, I'm not attractive," I tell her. I felt so unwanted when it came to guys. "I wouldn't say that, I think Shane and Nate have a thing for you." I give her a dry laugh, and reply, "Yeah, and Global Warming isn't going to KILL US ALL." I scream the last part. "No, it's not going to kill us, it's going to kill our grandkids," Nicole says.

"Yeah, nice way of putting it, dude. Now I don't want kids, so my grandkids won't have to go through that shit," I humor her. "Wow, we're laughing too much today," she tells me. I nod my head, and we're quiet for the rest of the trip. We were walking up the drive way to the Grey house when I finally ask Nicole the question that's been bugging me.

"Nicole, don't you think that you and Jason are moving along a bit fast?" I ask her. She bites her lip, thinking about the question. "Hmm, I guess so. I'll try and slow it down," she tells me. "And don't forget to make sure you guys are actually dating before doing anything else with him," I remind her. "Sure thing, mom!" she says.

I ring the door bell and wait for someone to answer. We wait, but no one opens the door. "Hmm, that's funny. Is anyone home?" I ask no one in particular. I turn the door knob and the door opens. "Yeah, nice move," Nicole says. I stick out my tongue at her before going inside. The living room looks totally trashed.

We walk further into the kitchen and see a bunch of beer bottles everywhere. I grab about four at a time and throw them into the Grey's recycling bin. There were quite a few beer bottles. Nicole and I did this for a couple minutes before we decided to go upstairs.

"Oh wait, they probably have football practice!" I finally realize. "I just walked two miles here only to find out that they have football practice?!" Nicole yells. "Uhh, yes?" I awkwardly answer her. "Okay, I'm gonna walk to the school then," she decides.

"Hey, at least they live closer to the school than we do," I say to lighten up things. "Yeah, I'll catch you later," she tells me before walking out the door. "Hey, you've been ditching me a lot lately! Oh, and do you want to go ice skating with me and the guys!?" I yell at her since she was getting further and further away.

"Yeah, I'll call you about it!" she screams before disappearing from my sight. I start to clean up the mess and putting back the furniture where it was supposed to be. I seriously hate cleaning, but the guys were my friends now, might as well help them. After five minutes, I get bored and lock the door then I go upstairs.

They shouldn't be leaving their door unlocked like that, even if it's Green Oak, one of the safest boroughs in New Jersey. I saw that Shane's door was slightly ajar, so I walk inside. There was Shane, just laying in his bed sleeping with his comforter tightly wrapped around him. I have to admit, it was a cute sight.

I close his door behind me, trying my best to not make any noise. I guess I did make some noise because Shane starts to stir in his bed. I'm freeze on the spot. Maybe I'll be so still, he won't see me! "Jenny, is that you?" he groggily asks. Shit! That never does work, does it? I plaster a smile on my face before turning around and saying, "Hey, what's up?!"

Okay, that was a bit too perky. He doesn't reply to my greeting. I walk up to him and see that his eyes are red, and he just plain looks sick. I put the back of my hand to his forehead to check his temperature. It's literally burning up. "Oh my God, Joe, you have a fever!" I exclaim. He groans and turns to face me, "Oh, no wonder why I feel like shit," he manages to say.

"When do Jason and Nate come back from practice?" I ask Shane. He mumbles "Four" through his comforter. It was about 1:30 right now. Two and a half hours, that kinda seems like a long time to me. "I'll be right back," I tell him. I go up to Nate's room to get the tri-fold and rummage through his back pack and found some black sharpies. PERFECT.

I go back to Shane's room, tri-fold in hand and two sharpies. "Hey, what's that for?" Shane asks me. "It's our project. OUR project. Should I repeat that again?" I say. I lay that thing down and start tracing the pencil marks with the sharpie. "Hey, did you take your temperature?" I ask him. I knew his forehead felt hot, but I didn't know the exact temperature. "I really don't think so. We don't get sick much," he answers me.

You'd think that rich people would at least have a thermometer around for fevers. Apparently, these guys don't. You're fucking kidding me! "Do you guys have anything with vitamin C in the fridge?" I ask him. "You know what? Never mind, I'll go check myself." I go down the stairs to the kitchen and open their fridge to find it virtually empty. Of course, there was beer.

Wait, was that some facial creams? Okay, that's strange. Probably their mom's. I see some orange juice, yes! And it's not from Concentrate. Today's my lucky day. I grab a big glass and pour everything in. There wasn't so much juice left. I threw out the carton before walking upstairs. I hand Shane the glass, and he happily accepts it. He gulps down the entire thing in one swig. Wow, probably got that skill from drinking alcohol so much.

"Hey, lemme help you with our project," Shane says as he unsteadily stands up. "Dude, it looks like you have a major hangover," I laugh. He didn't drink anything last night, so this was pretty funny. He grabs a sharpie and starts tracing the other floors that I hadn't started on yet. "Wow, even when you're sick, you manage to draw straight lines," I try to compliment him.

"The orange juice makes me feel a bit better," he says. "Oh, that's good then," I reply. We continue tracing the lines until we're finished a couple minutes later. Shane was much faster than I was. Unlike me, he wasn't a perfectionist when it came to projects.

"Hey, you know, about ice skating," Shane starts.

"Well, what about it?" I ask him.

"I was thinking of something else instead, since I'm sick," he says.

"And what exactly were you thinking of?" I wonder.

"Be my date to the Homecoming Dance," he tells me.

I start choking on my own saliva. Yes guys, I actually do that. If there's no water to spit out, or some other liquid, I start choking on my own saliva. And trust me, it's very painful and takes several minutes to get rid of. After my coughs subsided, I say, "Wait, freshmen aren't allowed to go, just sophomores, juniors and seniors."

This was true. I don't think other high schools had this rule, but Green Oak didn't give freshmen a lot of privileges at dances. Of course, there was the Freshmen Dance, strictly freshmen only. "Well, a freshman can come if they're the date of an upperclassman," Shane says. I'm still bewildered as I ask him, "But why me? Why not some other chick? You've got literally hundreds of girls awaiting attention from you."

"Can't you just respect my decision?" he asks me. "But would this count as a date?" I ask him. He scoffs before hoarsely answering, "Well, no duh. You are my 'date'." My face drops at this, and it seems like he notices. "What's with the face," he asks me. He's giving me this weird stare. "Uh, date? I haven't really been on a date.." I tell him, embarrassed.

"You know, kinda figures since you haven't even kissed a guy before," he points out. "Gee, thanks for reminding me. I already had that talk with Nicole this morning, thank you very much." God, he sure knows how to make people feel better. SIKE!

"So, is your answer yes or no?" he asks me. Obviously, the fever's not making him any less of a jerk, really. "The answer's yes," I finalize. He smiles at me, then says, "Buy a new dress, you'll need it." My jaw drops before I yell, "What!? I just spent like, over half a grand this week. I'm not gonna be shopping for awhile!"

Oops, none of the guys were supposed to know how much I spent. Nate thought that I was wearing one of my old dresses. "Wait, why would you be spending that much?" he asks me. Just like Nate did last night, I got that "oh shit" look on my face. I guess Shane should know the truth. "You know where I went for Nate's birthday?" I ask him. He nods and says, "Yeah, my mom's fashion show and stuff." I sigh and tell him, "Well, the dress and shoes I bought for the event were worth over five hundred bucks."

His eyes go wide, then he gets a huge scowl. "So you spent that much money for Nate?" he asks me. Why did he seem so pissed all of a sudden? "No, I thought Nate would want you to wear that stuff!" I was being honest, too. "Wait, who told you that?" Shane seems pretty curious. "Nicole just assumed, and I somehow hypnotized myself into thinking it, too. I mean, that would be pretty funny, wouldn't it?" I try to reason.

"You still spent all that money on me. Okay, here's the deal. You and me go shopping for the dress tomorrow since the dance is this Friday. I promise to pay for everything, okay?" he suggests. "No, I'm not gonna let you pay for all of that," I tell him. "Think of it as a favor, okay?" he says. I still look doubtful. He's being too nice. Knowing him, he'll pick something extremely expensive, and go overboard on everything else.

But then he's gonna hold it against me, making me owe him more stuff. I didn't want that. As if reading my mind, he tells me, "You won't owe me anything. I promise," he holds out his pinkie. Wow, my second pinkie swear this week. We pinkie swear on it. "Shane, you're being too nice," I tell him. "Well, if I'm being too nice, I'll be a jerk and tell you that you're Angela's replacement," he says.

I give him my intense glare like I did last week. "And unlike her, you're not a slut and you're the exact opposite of easy," he tries to redeem himself. "Nice save, dude. I was just about to pull that hair of yours. People who have fevers easily get hurt when their hair gets pulled, ya know?" I try to humor him. Today, his hair wasn't perfect. It was more wavy and out of control. This is probably my first time seeing Shane without amazing hair.

"Yeah, don't touch the hair. You've damaged it enough already." I laugh, remembering the first day. "Oh yeah, that water ice!" I exclaim. He tries to laugh, but it comes out pained. "Let's get you back in bed," I order him. He groggily gets up and lays down and wraps himself in the comforter again.

I touch his forehead once more. It cooled down a bit. "Hey, your fever's slowly going down," I tell him. He smiles and says, "That's good. I'll call you tomorrow, okay?" As I walk out his bedroom door, he calls out, "What, no hug today?" I laugh before telling him, "No offense, but I don't wanna get sick. Get better!"

I walk down stairs and see through the windows that Jason and Nate were home. They were getting out of Jason's car, gym bags in hand. When they get to the door, I can tell that they're surprised that the door's locked. I giggle before opening the door for them. They're both shocked to see me there. I walk to one of their couches and hand Nate his clothes from last night.

"Thanks for letting me borrow your threads. I washed them and everything," I say after he puts them in his gym bag. "Wait, where's Nicole?" I ask Jason. "We dropped her off before coming here," he answers me. "Aw, you're so sweet to her," I say. He could tell I was teasing him. He rushes upstairs to his room, leaving me alone with Nate.

"Make sure Shane gets better, okay?" I instruct Nate. I hate it when my friends are sick. Wow, I just addressed Shane as my friend. Nate gives me a tight-lipped smile before he too, runs upstairs to his room. Before I can walk out the door, Jason rushes down and asks me, "Hey, want me to drive you home?" You know, my legs are starting to hurt a bit, so I answer him, "Yes, please!"

We get in and buckle our seatbelts before Jason backs up from the driveway and zooms to my house. "Shane asked me to the Homecoming Dance," I tell him. He doesn't seem that shocked. "I asked Nicole, too. We should double date or something," he replies. "Hey, that's a good idea. But what about Nate? He'll be alone for the night," I say. I didn't want Nate to be all alone.

"Maybe you could let him stay at your house again," Jason suggests. Okay, now it's his turn to get that "oh shit" look on his face. I don't think he was supposed to say that. "Wait, you know about that?!" I shriek at him. "W-well, I mean, I saw Nate walking away from the house, and coming back early next morning," he tries to explain. "YOU KNEW?!" I ask him again. "I just assumed that's where he was, since it's the first time that I'm aware of that he sneaked out like that," he continues trying to explain himself.

"Wait, does Shane know? Or Nicole?" I ask him. I think I'm hyperventilating. "No, it's just me, okay? Your secret's safe with me. I don't see anything wrong with it, though," he reassures me. "Look, I've never had a boy over at my house, let alone a guy sleeping over in my bed, and Nicole might tease me about it, but I don't know about Shane," I tell him.

"Maybe you don't want Shane to be jealous," Jason suggests. "Why would Shane be jealous?" I ask him. Instead of answering my question, he tells me, "We're at your house, Jenny." He was right, we were right in front of it. "So you're not going to answer my question?" I ask him. He replies, "You'll have to find the answer to that question yourself."

I look at him in disbelief as I get out of his car. We wave good-bye to each other as he speeds away. 'You'll have to find the answer to that question yourself.' What was he talking about?

**Okay, Homecoming Dance just came up out of nowhere. Every high school's got one, right? I'm not In high school yet, so I don't really know. REVIEW!! **


	16. Atlantic City and Starbucks

**A/N - Okay, major thanks to my loyal reviewers, and the new readers for reviewing, too! I'm so glad you like this. Yes, I'm still sick as ever. My throat's starting to get better, but the congestion's terrible. No meds for that, unfortunately. All the coughing is making my abs hurt like shit. That means I have off today from work, onto the next chapter!!**

**Oh yeah, major thanks to prettygal6 for the dresses!! And accessories, and what the girls wear at the dance, like, everything! **

**One more thing; Okay, my friend Fauzul is like, forcing me to make him a character as this random guy who appears out of nowhere and comments on things, then disappears. Oh, he's supposed to be "cute." Yeah, Fauzul, you're lucky!**

"Jenny, somebody's called you!" I hear my mom yelling from downstairs. It was Sunday morning, and I did not get a good night's sleep. Not at all. "Yeah, mom, I'm coming!" I yell back at her. 'You'll have to find the answer to that question yourself.' That still confuses me so much.

I get up from bed and walk downstairs to see mom with one of our cordless phones in her hand. I'm still tired as I say, "Hello?" Of course, the person on the other line was Shane. "Get ready, I'll be there in an hour!" he tells me. "Wait, aren't you sick?" I ask him. "Well, I was, but I'm good to go. Remember, an hour!" he says before hanging up.

"Jenny, what was that all about?" my mom asks me. "Shane's taking me as his date to that Homecoming Dance. He's buying me my dress today," I tell her. "Wait, you mean you're going on a date with him? Jenny, he's a bit too old," she says. Oh man, she's being overprotective..

"Mom, he's less than two years older than I am, don't worry," I reassure her. She nods at me while I go upstairs to shower and get ready. I was finishing my breakfast, I mean, lunch, when Shane rings the doorbell. I put the bowl in the sink and open the door. He was wearing his girly sunglasses again. Probably to hide the fact that he's sick.

He greets my mom as I say bye to her, and we get in his car. Once again, I had to strap in his seatbelt for him. "Do you have OCD when it comes to seatbelts or something?" he asks me. "No, I just don't like breaking the law, dumbass," I reply. "No, don't wear the seat belt. She's crazy, it's not against the law," this random guy says. "Wait, who are you?" Shane asks him.

"The name's Fauzul, that's all you need to know," he says before disappearing. Okay, weird. **(There, you happy, Fizzle!? Yes, I just called you Fizzle. :P) **"Okay, that was major disturbing," I say. "Definitely," Shane agrees as he drives. "Wait, where are we going?" I ask him. He gets a mischievous grin before telling me, "Atlantic City."

"Whoa, Atlantic City?! Why are you taking me that far?!" I ask him. He swerves a bit on the road. We weren't on the highway yet. "It's not that far, about an hour and a half, and I've got a store that I want to go to," he tries explaining. "Well, what store is that then?" I ask him. I don't really trust him taking me that far. New York City's closer to Green Oak than Atlantic City. "You'll see. The designer's known for her 'feminine and whimsical' designs," he answers.

Whimsical? That sounds pretty fun. "Hey, that sounds pretty cool," I tell him. Really, it does. "I'm pretty sure you'll like it. Actually, I'm pretty sure that I'll like it more than you do," he says. He's got that smirk again. I raise my eyebrows in confusion. "Wait, so you ARE a cross dresser?! I knew it!" I exclaim.

"Whoa, hold on there. I didn't mean it that way," he corrects me. "Wait, then what do you mean?" I ask him. He's seriously confusing me. "You'll find out soon enough," he winks. Wow, he just.. Winked. Yeah, confusion's really taking a toll on my head now. I rest my head back in the seat and doze off.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Jenny, we're here, wake up," I can hear Shane say. I rub my eyes before unbuckling my seat belt and getting out of his car. Shane quickly locks it before grabbing my hand and dragging me with him. "Your surprise is the pier at Caesars?" I ask him. We were standing right in front of it. "A casino?" I continue. "None of us are old enough to gamble!" I go on.

He puts his finger over my lips to silence me. "Look, can't you just be patient?" he asks me. I remove his finger before saying, "Okay, fine. You've got a couple minutes before I hitchhike back home." I'm surprised to find myself in a Betsey Johnson store five minutes later. Shane's looking over the mini dresses.

"Hold up, mini dresses?" I ask him as I walk over to where he was.

"Yeah, they'd look good on you," he tells me.

"To think that the designer's in her 60s, too," I wonder in amazement.

"Whoa, she is?!" he asks me.

"Yeah, you didn't know that? She's a pretty cool designer," I tell him.

"Hey, what's your favorite color?" he asks me.

"Blue. Definitely blue. I'm unbelievably obsessed with that color. My room is entirely blue," I immediately say. I was rambling.

"Hmm, this would be perfect for you," he says as he pulls out a dress.

It was a short blue dress covered completely in sequins. It had a tight black sash around the entire waist area, and seemed to be a bit tight on the chest, too. It had removable straps and had small ruffles on the top and bottom. The bottom of it slightly bubbled out to about mid-thigh.

"How much is it?" I ask him.

"I'm paying for it, remember?" he reminds me.

"Yeah, I know, but I still want to know the price," I say.

"It's four twenty-five," Shane tells me, like it's nothing.

"What?! That's even more than my last dress!" I exclaim.

"Hey, it's a size two, can you fit that?" he goes on.

I grab the dress from him and go into a fitting room. I hear Shane yell from the other side, "You should wear it without the straps." I remove the straps before putting it on. Oh crap, there's a zipper in the back. I spend two minutes trying to zip it up before I hear Shane impatiently whine, "What's taking so long?"

Stupid zipper! "I need help with the zipper," I tell him. "I'll help you," he says. No way am I letting him help me with that. "Never mind, I think I'll manage," I say, trying to change his mind. This zipper is fucking impossible. "You know what, fine. Help me with my damn zipper," I order him. I open the fitting room door, and he comes inside.

"Why are you still wearing your bra?" he asks me. "Uh, why wouldn't I be?" I ask back. "This thing comes with a built-in one, you know. You wouldn't really need a bra," he tries explaining. "Look, I'm just trying it on." I turn around so he can pull up the zipper. He pulls it up and I feel my chest getting tight. "God, it's hard to breathe in this thing!" I complain.

"Their other sizes are a zero and ten, this is the last two," he tells me. "It fits well, I just never liked tight dresses," I say. "It looks good on you," he reassures me. "Oh wait, what's your shoe size?" he asks me. "It's a seven," I answer him. He leaves and I change back to my normal clothes. After I put the dress back on the hanger, I walk out to try and find Shane.

He wasn't anywhere in sight. I guess that I should just stand here and wait for him. Great, now he's making me wait for him? About five minutes later, I see him and he buys the dress while I wait. He was also holding another bag. Probably shoes or something. Next thing you know, we're at Hartford Mall.

"Dude, it's like, four, and I wanna go home and sleep!" I whine.

"You're going to need an outfit to change into for the party at my house afterwards," he tells me while flipping through some jeans at Forever 21.

"I could just wear my old stuff, you know," I point out.

"It's Homecoming, you need to look really good. You're my date, remember?" he goes on.

"Uh, you guys are never there at your parties," I remind him.

"Well, for this one, we are." Ugh, he just wouldn't give up, would he?

"Here, these look good," he says as he pulls out some pink skinny jeans.

"Uh, pink jeans? No thank you," I tell him.

"No, these would look good on you," he insists.

"Aren't skinny jeans for tall people?" I ask him.

He replies, "I thought they were supposed to lengthen your legs or whatnot. Besides, you'll look tall in them with the shoes I bought you."

"Did you buy me really tall pumps?" I ask him.

"Yeah, they're pretty cute," he says.

"And their price?" I keep asking.

"That's for me to know and you to never find out," he answers.

I pull a purple peace sign t-shirt off the rack. "Hey, this navy sweater is cute, too," he says as he throws me that button up sweater. "Wait, what's up with you saying cute?" I ask him. Guys don't say that shoes or clothes are cute. That's just wrong. "A lot of things look cute on you," he replies. "Aw, that's so sweet," I smile for dramatic effect. "Uh-huh, yeah, I can be nice when I want to be," he tells me. I head for the fitting rooms and tell Shane to come in when I got that new outfit on.

"Oh yeah, you need something to complete the outfit," he says. "It looks pretty fine to me," I tell him, standing in front of the mirror in the fitting room. He walks out then comes back about a minute later. "Dude, a yellow belt? That's not me," I try to convince him. "Just put it on around your waist," he insists. I do so, and I have to admit, it compliments the outfit pretty well. It was simply a skinny yellow belt with a semi-large matching buckle.

"Awesome, we're gonna buy everything," he says. I'm just glad that Forever 21 is pretty cheap. He's spending so much money on me today. Actually, it's only a lot to me, not him. We were in the food court ordering some Starbucks. We both got lemon ice tea. "Should we sit here and drink or do it on the way home?" he asks me. That's pretty considerate of him, asking me instead of just deciding for himself.

"Let's stay here," I suggest. He puts the bag down by his seat as we picked a random table to sit down in. This food court's pretty huge, I notice. I start looking around while drinking my refreshment and notice Nate and Jason not too far from us. I'm about to yell out their names when I see Angela walk up to Nate. She says something to him and he gets up and goes somewhere with her. Jason's left all alone now.

"Shane, did you just see that?" I quietly ask him. "What?" he asks, being quiet also. "Angela just walked over to Nate and Jason, and Nate went with her somewhere.. Alone." I put emphasis on the last word. For some reason, Shane doesn't seem so pissed. "Wait, how come you're not spazzing out?" I ask him. He's been bugging me all week about Angela, blaming everything on me.

"Eh, I was kind of lying about wanting to get back with Angela," he reluctantly admits. "Wait, what? So I don't owe you anything?" I ask, shock clearly evident in my voice. He was lying the entire fucking time?! "I.. uh, did it as a way to get you to agree with me to go to the dance as my date.." he explains. "So, you lied to me," I sum it up. "Don't think of it as that. I mean, I knew that you would've said no to my offer, so like.." his words drifted off. He didn't finish his sentence. Surprisingly, I wasn't mad at him. He'd do all that just to get a date with me.

"You know, that's a bad method, but it's sweet," I admit out loud. He perks up before asking, "It is?" I smile and tell him, "Yeah, it is." We get up with our drinks and head over to where Jason was sitting. Before we reach them, Nate came back and sat down, shock clearly evident on his face. Angela must've done something to him.

"Oh, hey guys, what's up?!" Jason loudly asks us once we were in hearing range. I stand by their table since there were only seats for two people. "Shane and I had a long day of shopping," I tell them. "Yeah, just for her. I got nothing. Zip. Zero. Nada." I laugh at him before saying, "Hey, you insisted, not me."

Shane and Jason start quietly talking to each other about the dance, so I decide to talk to Nate.

"Hey, what's up with you and Angela?" I ask him.

"Wait, you saw that?" he asks instead of answering my question.

"Yeah, I did, now answer the question," I tell him.

"She asked me to be her date to the dance," he admits.

"She what?!" I manage to say before choking on the iced tea.

Both the other guys turn around to look at me while Nate starts rubbing my back. That helps with the choking. "Wait, what did you say?!" I ask him, desperate for his answer. What's going on with me? "I uh, said yes. I mean, how could I say no?" he says. For some reason, I feel hurt. 'How could I not say no?' It seems like he likes Angela.

"I meant that as in, I'd be one of the few freshmen going to the dance," he reassures me. "Don't worry about it, I don't really like her." I let out a breath that I wasn't aware of holding. "So, you good?" he asks me. "Yeah, I feel much better now," I say. "Hey guys, let's go home," Jason tells us. Oh right, I need to go home! I almost forgot about that. Wow, how could I forget about that?

**XoLAGOHxO**

As Shane pulls up to my house, I couldn't help but give him a huge bear hug. "Thank you so much for today!" I cheer as I get out. "Oh yeah, that Geometry project," I remind him. "I'll keep everything at my house for safe keeping," he tells me before driving off. That night throughout dinner, I couldn't erase the smile off of my face. I decided to crash early since I wanted to catch up on sleep.

My mind's racing with thoughts as I'm laying on my bed. Nate's going to the dance with Angela, but he apparently didn't like her. Shane was lying to me the whole time about him wanting Angela back. Jason's going to the dance with Nicole. And Shane spent all that money on me today. Wow, it hasn't even been two weeks since school started and it's already been a whirlwind.

**A/N - So.. A little bit of drama, I guess. Review and tell me what you think about it! Once again, major thanks to prettygal6 for the dresses and outfits and everything. She's doing Nicole's outfit, too. Fauzul, I hope you're happy. Until next update, goodnight! Or morning, or afternoon. Whatever time it is that you're currently reading this. **

**Seriously, Shane just keeps getting sweeter and sweeter. Remember, review!! They make me happy!**


	17. Rockclimbing's Painful

So, I'm sitting in homeroom with Nate. It's just like any other day, right? Uh, wrong. Very, very wrong. Instead of talking about our project like we should be doing, Nate's letting Angela flirt with him. In our fucking homeroom! And I'm right next to him. I mean, I can see what little cleavage she has from here. Not that I'm looking, I mean, but seriously.

"Nate, you're soo hawtt," she coos at him. I'm about to puke out my breakfast of bagels. "Younger men are so much sexier than your fucking older brother," she goes on. She runs her nails over his jaw before finally leaving him. I can tell that he's about to puke, just like me. Yay, best friends regurgitate together, right? That just sounded wrong..

"It's okay, man. We were both tortured," I say, trying to comfort him.

He shivers before replying, "She was trying to show me her cleavage. I mean, what cleavage?!"

He was right, Angela was more flat-chested than I was. "Why did I agree to go with her to Homecoming again?" he asks me.

"Eh, beats me. You never told me," I say.

"Oh, yeah," he mumbles. He never told me why, but I guess he'll tell me when he feels like it. I know for sure that he doesn't like her.

"She touched me. Ugh, gross," he goes on about Angela.

"Well, since you're her date to the dance, aren't you gonna be dancing with her?" I ask him.

"Whoa, I just totally forgot about that," he realizes.

"Uh, it's Homecoming DANCE. I mean, it's a tad bit obvious," I say.

"Oh, I was just thinking about other things when I gave her my answer," he tells me.

"What other things?" I ask him, curiosity getting the better of me.

"Oh, no, it's nothing," he defends himself. I'm guessing he wants to drop the subject.

"Okay then.." I say right as the bell rings.

I'm sitting as my squad, just minding my own business, when I look over and find Angela eyeing Shane. It's obvious that she's using Nate to make Shane jealous. What other reason could it possibly be. I mean, if she didn't like him, she'd probably use him for his fuckabilities. **(A/N - Supposed to mean fucking abilities. I just totally made that up! Wait, it's not even that good.. Never mind.)**

After role was taken, Mr. Wendler tells us that we would be rock climbing today. Well, everybody but the freshmen. Apparently, we weren't experienced with the equipment. Uh, we've been working with ropes, harnesses and helmets since sixth grade! What the fuck? I didn't feel like protesting, so while other people were getting ready to climb the walls, I had to pass inspection.

I had the harness on perfectly tight, and my helmet too, within three minutes. I told you guys that I was experienced with this! I let Mr. Wendler inspect me and he checks off my name and gives me the "OK" to go climb. I walk up to Shane and his friends and ask them, "So, who's climbing?" The two friends look at each other before telling me, "You are."

They're making me climb? Uh, okay. Shane's friends are working the rope, and he's just standing there. I hook myself to the rope before I start climbing up. To tell you the truth, rock climbing's pretty easy. Well, it depends on the people working the rope. And these guys were doing a terrible job at it. I wouldn't even be climbing up and they'd be pulling on it, and when I finally do go up, they don't pull it. What the fuck?

"Ahh!" I scream as they let go of the rope. "What the fuck are you guys doing?!" I yell down. The only thing holding me up are my hands, and they're slipping from the rocks. Damn my sweaty hands! "Hey, it's just a joke!" they yell back since I got pretty high up. "Get the rope tight!" I order them. If I fall to my death, I will sue them in the afterlife.

"You're not gonna get injured," they tell me. "And why the fuck not?!" I angrily ask them. I was about to fall off. "Because Shane's going to catch you!" they yell as I start to fall down. Instead of Shane catching me, I end up landing on one of the guys, but not before punching him in the face as I fell. I am so lucky that there's mats down here. The guy's nose was bleeding now.

"Brian, you okay?!" the other guy asks. "Fuck, Paul, she just fucking broke my nose!" he exclaims. "Jenny, are you okay?!" Shane asks me. That injured ankle of mine hurts again! I thought it'd be healed by now, but no, it hurts, again. AGAIN! "Argh, my fucking ankle. Your friends are fucking idiots!" I curse at him. Mr. Wendler gets up and asks us, "Okay, what the hell happened?!"

"Blame it all on them!" I tell him before barging out through the open doors to the front field. There was another class outside playing soccer. I already knew that Shane would follow me. He grabs my arm and turns me around to face him.

"Are you alright?" he asks again.

"Yeah, I'm fine. My ankle's just being a bitch again," I tell him, calming down.

"Look, I'm seriously sorry about my friends. They put you in serious danger. I promise not to let it happen again," he says.

"Yeah, how can you make a promise like that? Knowing them, they'd probably do something else," I point out to him.

"Look, I don't know why they did that, okay?" he says, exasperated.

"Well, I don't know either! I'm just as mad as you, if not, more!" I yell.

"So, I wonder why they did it. I know that they think you're a cool girl," he says, thinking.

"You go and try to find that out or something while I go back inside and explain things to Mr. Wendler," I tell him before doing just that.

He totally believed me that bloodying up Brian's nose was a complete accident. He was at the nurse right now. Paul was in the principal's office getting questioned about the incident. I could tell already that this was going to be a long day.

**XoLAGOHxO**

People were staring at me as I sat down with Nate, Shane and Nicole at lunch. Everybody had heard about what happened in PE. People were staring at Angela, too. For whatever, I really don't know why. "So, why'd they do it?" I ask Shane. He got a really angry expression on his face before telling me, "Angela paid them to do it."

"WHAT?! SHE FUCKING DID WHAT?!" I shriek. Those who weren't already looking at me now had every ounce of their attention on me. I could feel hundreds of eyes on the table. I am so glad that she didn't have this lunch period. "Paul and Brian snitched on her. The guys are suspended for the rest of the week, and are banned from playing football for the rest of the season. Angela's punishment is undecided," Nate informs me.

I knew that Angela still likes Shane. I knew that she was using Nate. I knew that she was a completely stupid blonde bimbo, no offense you other blondes out there. I never knew that she could be this low. I could've broken my back! Other people could have been injured if I fell on them. This was unbelievably evil of her.

I couldn't help it, I start crying. Just bawling my eyes out. I never wanted anyone to hate me enough to do something like that. Sure, it was just a twenty-five foot fall, but it was so dangerous. Nicole gets up to try and comfort me but Shane beats her to the chase. Next thing I know, he's hugging me, running his hand soothingly over my hair, telling me, "It'll be alright."

"That was so low," I manage to mumble through my sobs. "I know, it'll be OK," he says, comforting me. I haven't cried in so long. And just because of Angela, I was showing so many people my weak side right now.

**XoLAGOHxO**

The people at the office wouldn't let me go home since Shane wasn't my guardian. They called my mom and she came. I asked her if I could stay with Shane. No, I practically begged her. Shane wanted me to stay at his house with him for that day. Since my mom wasn't his guardian either, the office had to call his mom. That took a bit of time since she's always so busy. After his mom gave them the OK, Shane was driving me to his house.

"Mom, I'm gonna work on that project with Nate. I'm so sorry for being away from the house so much lately. High school's busy," I tell her on Shane's iPhone. "Yeah, I'm alright. No, my ankle just hurts a bit. I'm fine. Love you, bye," I say before I hung up. "How you feeling now?" Shane asks me. "A lot better," I reassure him.

I print out the Geometry worksheets for me and Shane and we work on them together. The weird thing is, Shane's pretty smart. I guess he just never tries in school. We were done within twenty minutes. "Rock Band?" I suggest. "Oh, definitely," he replies. We play that until Nate and Jason arrive home right before three.

"Hey, you guys are early," I say to them as they barge into Shane's room. Nicole was with them, too. "Nate and Nicole wanted to check up on you. Well, I did too. Oh, and something about a project?" Jason says before leaving. "Nicole, I'm fine, don't worry. Go hang out with Jason," I tell her before saying bye to Shane and dragging Nate up to his room.

I turn on his MacBook Air and open up Safari and Power Point. "So, that History project," I say. "Yeah, do you need help?" he asks. "Nah, I'm just gonna do an outline of the report, then start the Power Point," I tell him. I was finished the outline for the report within five minutes and saved up the Power Point after thirty. "That should be enough work for today," I sigh as I shut off his laptop.

"Did I tell you that you got ripped off for your laptop yet?" I ask him, trying to be funny. He chuckles before answering, "Nope, I don't think you have. Would I really care if I got ripped off?" I laugh along with him. "No, I don't think you would since you're so rich." Seriously, the Grey family is totally loaded, though I already mentioned this.

"You know, my birthday's in three days," he points out.

"But didn't we already celebrate it?" I ask him.

"May I ask for just one more present?" he asks me, with a puppy dog pout.

Oh my God, he looks so adorable! "Uh, sure. What do you want?" I ask.

"Well, I'm gonna take Shane's idea and twist it around with me. Let's go rollerblading!"

I raise my eyebrows at him before asking, "Rollerblading? For your birthday? With me? Huh?" Wow, that was a lot of questions.

"Well, as friends, of course," he explains.

"Oh, sure thing then," I say as I spin around in his computer chair.

Wow, I'm starting to get dizzy. I get up from the chair and unsteadily walk to his bed and fall back on it. "Jenny, about today, are you sure you're fine?" I hear him ask me as he walks to his bed. "I was just overwhelmed with so much emotion. I guess that's why I cried. I haven't cried in so long. Don't worry, I'm fine now," I tell him, being absolutely honest.

"I fucking hate Brian and Paul so much," he seethes. "Don't hate them. It wasn't their fault," I try persuading him. "No, it was! They could've said no, but they caved in because of money!" he screams. "Please, Nate, don't freak out," I say, trying to calm him down. He punches the wall which leaves a gaping hole in it. He pulls his hand out, unclenching his fist. His knuckles are dripping in blood.

"Oh, my God! Nate!" I yell as I drag him to the connected bathroom. I run his hand under some lukewarm water, cleaning his hand. "I-I'm sorry for getting angry," he apologizes as I continue to wash his hand. "it's alright," I shakily tell him. That was so scary. I mean, Nate's a sweet guy, but.. The way he punched his wall, and how he left a hole in it.. It was just terrifying.

I'm still shaking as I put bandages over his cuts. They were only a few big ones. After I was finished, I say to him, "I'm gonna go ask Shane to drive me home now." He hugs me, apologizing again. I wave good-bye to him and leave his room. My fingers are trembling as I turn the knob on Shane's door. "Hey, can you drive me home?" I ask him.

I saw that he was watching some TV. He turns the television off before saying, "No problem." The entire drive's been silent so far. He pulls up to my house before asking me, "Why do you seem so scared?" Was it really that obvious? "Oh, it's just a bit cold," I lie through my teeth. It was still pretty warm, since it was technically summer.

He doesn't seem to buy my excuse but nods at me as I shut his door and walk up to my house. "Bye, Jenny!" he yells as he drives off. I whisper a silent, "Bye, Shane," as I unlock my door and walk inside. Nobody asks me about today at dinner. I guess mom explained everything to them.

Laying in bed right now is so different from laying in bed last night. I was happy last night. But now, I'm just simply scared. I'm sad because of what Angela did. Nate really scared me. How could things change so fast? I fall asleep with tears slowly creeping down my cheeks.

**A/N - Wow, you guys didn't expect that coming, did you? Haha, neither did I! I just totally made that up on the spot. Like, I had no idea where the rock climbing was going, or why Brian and Paul did that. No Fauzul this chapter. It was solely dedicated to drama. **

**Review and tell me what you think. I know Nate seems too bad, and Shane seems too sweet, but I'll try and work things out in the end. **

**Oh yeah, if you can, review saying that Fauzul didn't sound retarded last chapter, cuz that's what he just said to me. I mean, I thought it was random and funny! Come on, it wasn't that bad, was it?**


	18. Fire Drill

**A/N - Okay, this update came EXTREMELY quick, but I have off from work today, so I thought that I'd reward you guys. Well, there's also a downside since this came so quick. You'll see soon enough what I'm talking about ;)**

**Fauzul got a fan fiction account! He didn't tell me his username yet, though. PM me if you want his MySpace, cuz he's totally rad. REALLY.**

I look in the mirror as I brush my teeth and I'm surprised at what I see. I was crying last night, but my eyes weren't swollen. I didn't have deep circles, either. My eyes were simply very, very red. I think that I need a pair of sunglasses today. I grab some big black ones as I walk out the door to my bus stop.

I'm surprised to see Shane's car parked in front of my house. I warily walk up to it, and the window rolls down, revealing Shane. "Uh, you're driving me to school today?" I ask him. "Jason's driving Nicole, so I thought that you wouldn't want to get on that bus alone," he reasons. "Oh, well, thanks," I say as I open the door to the front seat.

"You're pretty lucky that Brian and Paul weren't some of our best players," he tells me. "If they were, I wouldn't just have the entire female population at school against me, I'd have the sports fanatics, too, right?" I ask. He chuckles and nods, "Right."

"Oh yeah, do you know why Nate's hand is messed up?" he questions. I start tensing up, and it takes me a long time just to utter out the word, "No." I can tell even behind his sunglasses that he was doubting my answer, but I refuse to talk to him about that subject, or about yesterday, for the entire ride to the school.

"Thanks for the ride," I tell him before closing the car door and getting my books out of my locker. It's obvious that I've arrived at school a little bit early, thanks to Shane. It's a good thing, really. I don't want people asking me questions about what happened yesterday. I was in the middle of playing games on my calculator when Nate finally sits down next to me.

"Hey, where's everyone else today?" he asks me. "Obviously in the hallway since they're gossip queens and or kings," I answer. "Oh yes, there's quite a bit to gossip about," I continue. "Now you're playing games on your calculator?" he asks. "The result of an uneventful morning," I tell him. I turn off my TI-84 Plus and put it away.

"Or simply because you're a geek," he humors me. "Eh, that makes sense too," I say, laughing. On a more serious note, I ask him, "So, how's your hand?" He lifts up the damaged appendage and inspects it a bit before replying, "Pretty good. Healing up nicely, though you can't see it." I let out of a breath of relief. "That's good. Do me a favor and don't go around punching things anymore," I order him. "Trust me, that won't be a problem," he reassures me.

I hear some girl talking loudly in the hallway, and I grab Nate's uninjured hand and drag him to the door so we could hear. "Jenny was the one who paid Brian and Paul to do it! She wanted to steal Shane from Angela, and now she's trying to get Angela expelled," I hear Morgan telling a large group of people. The look on the people's faces tells me that they're starting to believe her.

She continues, "Oh, and if you don't believe me, Shane's taking her to Homecoming, too." Oh yeah, that reminds me. "Nate, are you still going with Angela to Homecoming?" I quietly ask him. He quickly shakes his head and tells me, "The only reason why I agreed to was because I felt kind of left out of our group. Everyone else had a date, and I'd be stuck at home."

"Oh yeah, Angela's punishment? You wouldn't believe it. She's got in-school suspension for two weeks, which means that she'd be in school, but no classes. She'd be doing boring work, ALONE. She didn't even do anything! And she's banned from going to Homecoming, too. You know, because of Jenny, I wasn't allowed to go to that Grey party the first week of school. She's a freshman who thinks that she can do anything," Morgan goes on. "Who's with me?!" she asks the crowd. Everyone murmurs agreements with her speech.

Great, now everyone hates me because of something that I didn't even do. I wasn't trying to steal Shane! He was the one that started everything. Well, I did, but by accident. Everything he did was on purpose. Nate whispers, "She's lying through her fucking teeth." He's got that mad look on his face again. "Dude, calm down. Stress isn't good for you," I say.

"Aren't you mad about this? Morgan's spreading a bunch of rumors about you!" he yells. Everybody turns in our direction now. "Oh yeah, one more thing guys. She's trying to get Shane, but she's also trying to get a good fuck with Nate. What a whore," Morgan says to the people. Okay, call me whatever you want, but you don't go around being a hypocrite!

"You're fucking lying! I didn't do anything to Shane, he started everything! And Nate's just my friend! I'm not looking for a "good fuck" because I'm a fucking virgin! I haven't even kissed a guy before, you slut!" I scream at her. "You're the one that sleeps around with guys. You're the one that's trying to get in every guy's pants. How many dicks have been in your mouth, huh?!" I go on.

"Oh, and don't get me started about your sense of style. You dress like a whore, simply because you are one. You've got no life, and you butted into my business when it had nothing to do with you. You know nothing about me or Shane or Nate, so stay the fuck away from all of us. And tell Angela that she will never get Shane back. Ever. All he thought of her was his fuck buddy. She was never on girlfriend status."

Morgan's mouth opens and closes before she just flips me off and stomps away. I know that my speech was horrible, but I was so angry! I hate hypocrites. She was a whore, but she was calling me one. I'm anything but that! I had no idea where the whole sense of style thing came up.

Do you guys know those applauses, that starts out with one person doing it really slow, then more people joining in and it gets louder and faster? I'm surprised to find that happening right now. That huge crowd was clapping because of my speech. People were congratulating me on "Putting that slut in her place." The bell rang and the crowd dispersed. Oh great, my next class had Morgan in it.

I drag Nate with me to Ms. Thimm's room instead of heading to gym. I didn't know what Nate's class was next, and I could seriously care less. "Okay, Ms. Thimm, can I hide out in your class please? There's this angry bitch that I need to avoid next period," I tell her as I plop down in one of her seats. It was time for unified arts, so all the basic classrooms were empty this period.

"And why is he here?" she asks me, pointing to Nate. "Because if I'm skipping class and so is he, we should be working on our project," I reason with her. Nate's just sitting there with a dumbfound expression on his face. **(A/N - I seriously had a teacher named Ms. Thimm who let me do this. I did it three times, and it was for gym. She actually let me and e-mailed my gym teacher to legally excuse me. How cool is that?!)**

"Wait, let me e-mail your teachers first so this would be legal," she says as she goes on typing in her laptop. "Did our History teacher just let us hide out in her room?" Nate asks me, shock evident in his voice. "Yup, now let's get to work on our skit," I tell him. For the next forty minutes, I start telling him everything I knew about our emperor. Every couple minutes, his eyes would go wide and he'd say, "That's fucked up."

"Looks like we should head for our next class," I say as I glance up at the clock. He looks up at it, too, before saying, "Yeah, let's go." I start speed walking to Biology when I feel that my ankle hurts again. I have to limp the rest of the way there. People were giving me weird stares as I limp to class, books in my hand. I see Shane walking towards me, and I stop since I was already at the door to the class.

"Hey, why'd you skip?" he asks me once he was close enough. "Technically, I didn't skip since I was excused," I try explaining. He takes off his sunglasses to show confusion. "Morgan's in our gym class, and I just had this weird confrontation with her, so, I kinda skipped to stay away from stupid shitty drama." He looks like he gets it now. "Oh, okay then. See you at lunch, Jenner," he says before he pinches my cheek and walks away.

Okay, who hates getting their cheeks pinched? I do, I hate it a lot! And he just called me Jenner, too. Only my really close friends call me that, mainly Nicole. "Whoa, I totally saw that dude," I hear Nicole say to me. "Yeah, my cheek hurts," I playfully whine. We laugh as we walk in and separate for class. Why do we have to sit so far away from each other??

**XoLAGOHxO**

Today, I only bought cookies since I wasn't that hungry. As I walk to Nate and Shane's lunch table, people start giving me high-fives. They're congratulating me for seriously telling off Morgan. Apparently, they don't believe a single thing she says. Something about, "She's been a lying bitch ever since pre-K." We were never in the same grade so I didn't really know.

"Dude, word's out that you verbally kicked Morgan's skinny ass!" Nicole says as she sits down next to me. All of the jocks who used to sit here sit with the cheerleaders now. Totally fine by me. "Psh, damn right I did!" I exclaim as we punch each other's knuckles. "Oww!" I say as I pull my hand back. "Looks like everybody's hurting their hands these days," Nate points out. We all start laughing.

"Guys, I miss middle school. All we had to worry about back then was.. Wow, nothing, really. They had it so easy," I sigh. "Wow, you're talking like we're juniors prepping for the SATs or something," Nicole says. "Oh yeah, that reminds me. SATs, yeah, I was trying to avoid that!" Shane exclaims. "Oh yeah, the study guide. It's bigger than a dictionary," I say, making him feel worse. "Yeah, whatever," Shane mumbles as he eats some fries.

"You know, you're gonna end up being a hobo if you fail the SATs," Fauzul says as he pops up out of nowhere. "Oh, hey, what's up Fizzle?!" Nicole asks him as he sits down next to her. "I was kidding about the whole seatbelt thing a couple days ago. I dunno, some people just might end up being hobos," he says, trying to explain his randomness.

"Eh, it's no biggie," I tell him. "Shane, guess what?" I ask him. "You've known Fauzul for a long time?" he asks. "Whoa, you're good," Fauzul says to him. "Yeah, me and Nicole have known him since like, fourth grade or something? Maybe earlier," I explain. "I'm just awesome at appearing and disappearing, cuz I'm just cool like that," Fauzul tell us. "Fizzle, go back to your other group of friends," I order him. "And I'm gonna disappear again. I am the great Houdini!" he exclaims before, of course, disappearing.

Nate gives me, Shane and Nicole a weird look before Nicole says, "Yeah, don't ask." I finish up a cookie before saying, "The great Houdini? He must be smoking something." Nicole shakes her head before reasoning, "Nope, more like sniffing." I nod my head in agreement. "Is there a difference?" Shane asks us. "Well, kinda, I guess. I really don't know. My friends smoke and sniff narcotics, not me," I reply. Wait, is there really a difference?

"Wait, I know what the difference is!" Nicole yells. "What?" Nate and Shane both ask. "The crack sniffers have long pinkie nails!" she concludes. "So that's why all those weird guys had long pinkie nails!" I say. That makes a lot of sense now. "Wait, what about people who smoke pot?" she asks me. "I know a couple. They're all skateboarders, though," I tell her.

"Why are we talking about drugs?" Nate asks all of us, well, Nicole and I mostly. "You know, I don't wanna know," Shane says before getting up to throw away his trash. "Well, I found out because one guy just randomly told me, and the other guy, I simply asked and he admitted to it, straight up," I inform Nate. He gives me a questioning look. "Seriously?" he asks. I nod my head.

I put my hands over my ears as the fire alarm starts ringing. Oh my God, it's so fucking loud! The teachers on lunch duty yell directions at us to go out onto the football field and stand in straight lines. Pretty vague if you ask me. Within five minutes, every student attending Green Oak is outside on either the front or back field while firefighters barge into the school to take down wherever that fire was.

"I don't think this is a drill," I silently whisper to Nicole. She turns her head since I was behind and says, "I wonder what got burned." I was wondering the same thing, too. I was starting to see some smoke go through the windows that were open. According to the looks of it, the fire was near my locker. Some teachers go out and start asking the students questions. I can't really hear them.

When they get within hearing range, I hear them ask, "Who has locker D-15?!" Holy shit, that was my locker. I raise my hand and scream, "I DO! My locker's D-15!" The teachers rush over to me and say that I have to report to the principal's office. I ask them, "Can I bring my friend along with me?" They shake their heads as they walk me to the principal's office at the front of the school.

Oh no, there was a fire, it was my locker that was being questioned, and now I'm being escorted by a bunch of teachers to the principal's office? I think his name was Mr. McFall or something. Three minutes later, I find myself sitting in a big chair face to face with him.

"Jenny, do you know why you're here?" he asks me in that voice you use when you're questioning a kid who misbehaved.

"No sir, I'm not aware," I politely answer him.

"You are aware that there was a fire just now, correct?" he continues asking me.

"Yes, I am. I'm also aware that it has something to do with my locker," I continue being polite.

"Yes, it does. There was a ring of fires on the 1-20 D section by your homeroom. Yours was labeled the source," he informs me.

All color washes away from my face. "You mean, everything in there's burned down?" I ask him.

"Everything. We want to know, do you know anybody that would do this to you? Anyone with grudges?" he asks.

My face gets into that special glare of mine. I grit out, "Morgan and Angela."


	19. CVS and Condoms

"Do you mean the Angela that currently has in-school suspension, and Morgan, her cheerleader friend?" he asks for my confirmation.

"Look, Mr. McFall, I'm not exactly sure that it's them, but they've been having issues with me lately," I try to reason.

"We need all the help we can get right now, Jenny. I'll go and check to see if Morgan was out of class when the fire occurred," he tells me before saying, "You may go to your Geometry class now."

My Geometry books and everything else was in my locker, so I walk to class empty-handed. The entire row of lockers of D 1-20 were burned, charred, and just horrible. Why would they stoop this low? I find myself asking that question quite a lot. "Any student that was excused from class during fifth period, and any student having fifth period lunch, and students who have lockers D 1-20, please report to the auditorium," the loudspeakers announce. "Oh, and teachers, please make sure they do so," Mr. McFall adds.

Since I was in fifth period lunch, I had to go even though I was the victim. Right as I got in, Mr. McFall told me to stand next to him by the podium with the mic. I saw Nicole, Nate, Shane and a few other students. Morgan was a part of them, and so were Cassie and Erica.

"You know, kids, arson is a huge issue for schools," Mr. McFall starts. "It's dangerous, and it can severely injure people. Now, the rule here is, if you start a fire on school grounds that does serious damage, you have to pay a fine of fifteen thousand dollars to the fire department. You could also get expelled and/or arrested. People who helped you in any way could get punished too."

The three girls were glaring right at me. "Now, Jenny, tell me what happened," he tells me as he gives me the microphone. "Mr. McFall, I don't really know anything," I try convincing him. "No no, what you know could help us in this investigation," he goes on, trying to persuade me. "All I know is that the fire started in my locker first. All my books and supplies are burned, and so is my calculator? Like, that stuff's replaceable since I don't put anything sentimental in my locker. I'm not sure about the other kids, though," I tell the students.

The other nineteen students who were my locker neighbors say that they didn't have anything but books in there since school just started. "The person who started the fire will also have to pay for book replacements. That will be more than three thousand dollars," Mr. McFall warns. I see Morgan and her group start squirming.

"We've already had an accident yesterday concerning Jenny," he says through the mic. "We're all going to stay in here until somebody fesses up. I know it's at least one of you guys," he continues. "I have quite a few clues who the culprits are, but until they admit that they committed a crime, you're all staying here." Almost everybody started groaning and yelling complaints.

I grab the mic and say, "Look, Mr. McFall, the culprits will not admit to the crime, so don't punish the other students and force them to stay here," I tell him. "I-I'll find some way to pay for everything since it's my fault," I say before even thinking about it. What was I talking about?! I didn't have eighteen thousand bucks! I knew that Morgan and Angela and their group was behind all of it, but the good side of me just decided to pop out at a really bad moment.

"Wait, aren't there security cameras?" I ask Mr. McFall. The school just installed them in every classroom and hallway. Major project that costed a bunch, but Green Oak wasn't poor.

"Yes, we do, but I miss doing this," he finally admits.

"Okay, so you just did all this for the heck of it!?" I screech. I knew I was being rude, but this was inconvenient and embarrassing.

"It's morally better if the students own up to their mistakes," he tries explaining.

"Sir, do you know that this is a school full of people who will do anything to take revenge?" I ask him.

"Yes, I was aware of this, but it's still morally better," he continues.

"No, you just wasted our time, really. The district paid a lot of money for the new cameras," I tell him.

"Aren't you guys glad that you're missing class?" he asks them. They all agree with him. "See, at least they're okay with it."

"Well, have you reviewed the footage yet?!" I shriek. I was taught to not be rude to older people, but he was seriously wasting my time.

"The people in the office are doing this as we speak," he says.

Just as he said that, four of the school's security guards came in. One had a grip on Angela. The other three went to Morgan, Cassie and Erica. "You guys are going to be spending your night in the juvenile detention center. We have evidence that you were the starters of today's fire," one guard says as they grab all three girls. Was this legal to just be doing that? I really wonder.. Weren't the guards being too harsh? Wait, it's Angela, Morgan, Cassie and Erica! That wouldn't be possible.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Wait, so they burned down your locker?!" Gina asks me once I get home. We were in my room.

"Yeah, high school girls are crazy. Enjoy your last days of middle school," I tell her.

"I know that, but I never knew they would be doing stuff like that. What's gonna happen to them?" Gina's pretty hyped up about my day.

"The security guards said something about spending a night in juvenile detention. I think they're getting fined eighteen grand, and possibly expulsion?" I tell her.

"Whoa, that's so cool. My sister's popular!" she exclaims.

"Uh, that's not cool. I've got girls paying guys to kill me and burning my stuff. That's dangerous," I try reasoning with her.

"Whatever, my sister's still popular. You haven't even been in high school for two weeks, and all this has happened," she ignores my reasoning.

"Uh, I just wanted a normal high school life, being ignored without people plotting revenge against me," I say.

"You know, I'm gonna have a huge legacy to live up to. I'll have to stir up more drama than you do!" she squeals.

"Yeah, good luck with that. Hopefully you don't. Seriously," I tell her.

I hear somebody knock on the door downstairs and walk down to open it. Mom and Dad were in Atlantic City for one of those three hour long Vietnamese concerts, then the casino. They won't be home until at least three in the morning, or even later. "Oh, hey. You're that girl from the party that Gina locked up in a closet, right?" the blonde boy from the party asks me as I open the door.

I can hear Gina running down the stairs as she rudely pushes me aside. "Oh, hey Eric, what's up?" she giddily asks him.

"Oh, nothing much GiGi," he answers her. GiGi? You've got to be kidding me. That's a totally strange pet name.

"Don't tell the 'rents!" she yells at me while dragging Eric upstairs to her room.

"Don't worry, I'll go buy you guys some condoms!" I yell as in to joke around.

Eric shows up at the top of the stairs and tells me, "You know, that might just come in handy." He was being serious, too.

"No, I was just kidding!" I say to him. Gina shows up by his side and holds his hand.

"Uh, Jenny, please? Think of it as a HUGE favor," she begs me.

"FUCK NO! YOU GUYS ARE ELEVEN!" I scream at her. My little sister was asking me to buy condoms for her?! She was supposed to be the innocent little girl.

"No, I'll hand you the money right now," she says right before running into her room. She runs down the stairs and gives me a twenty dollar bill.

"Wait, Eric, have you even started puberty yet?!" I yell at him.

"Well, I started school late, and my birthday was last week, and since GiGi's in advanced classes, and I'm just in normal classes, we have the same classes. I'm trying to say, I'm fourteen. So yeah, I've started puberty for quite some time now," he says to me.

"No, that's gotta be illegal. I am not fucking buying you guys condoms!" I shriek. I'm about to rip up this bill.

"It'll only be illegal if he's eighteen, I think. Please Jenny!" Gina continues begging me.

"Hold on, I need to make a quick call," I tell her.

I can't believe that I was doing this. My little sister was gonna have sex, and she was begging me to buy her condoms. She was eleven for fucking crying out loud! I go over to the kitchen to get the phone and dial in Shane's number. He picks up after three rings.

"Hey Jenny, what's up?!" he asks me.

"Yeah, I need a favor," I tell him.

"Sure, what do you need?"

"Can you drive over here and drive me to the nearest drug store?" I ask him.

"Sure, no problem. I'll be there in five minutes," he says before hanging up.

I press the "end" button before walking upstairs to Gina's room.

"Gina, you're eleven, you shouldn't be having sex," I tell her, trying to convince her that she's too young.

"Jenny, I think that I'm ready. I really like Eric," she says before giving him a smile.

"No, why don't you guys just decide to not have sex?!" I say, getting extremely angry.

"I said that I'm ready, Jenny!" she yells at me. She's being a total brat.

"Look, you're practically a kid! I'm not your mom, and I don't want to have this fucking burden," I try reasoning with her.

"No, you don't know anything about me! I can do whatever I want, whenever I want!" she shrieks.

"You're too young, Gina. Do you know how this makes me feel? I'm only agreeing because I know that you won't listen, and what if you end up pregnant at the age of eleven?!" I'm practically screeching now.

"You're right, I won't listen because I know that this will not be a mistake. They won't let a little kid buy condoms, so I can only depend on you," she tells me in a calmer voice.

"Where did I go wrong?" I ask her before walking downstairs and out the door. I felt like I was going to cry again. My sister was one of the most stubborn people ever. If I refuse to buy the condoms, she'd go ahead and have sex anyways, protection or no protection. I didn't want my sister contracting a disease or worse, getting pregnant at such a young age. I have to buy them. If I loved her, I have to or else bad things would happen.

I try to control my emotions and calm down enough to not cry. Shane pulls up just as I get myself together. Once we were at CVS, I head straight to the back where they had all the condoms. Shane was following right behind me, his expression looking more and more shocked as we neared my, I mean, my sister's destination.

"Jenny, who are you gonna have sex with?" he hesitantly asks me.

"What's the size of the average fourteen year old?" I ask him.

"You're gonna do it with Nate?!" he all but yells.

"Dude, shut up! Calm down, it's not for me," I tell him.

"Oh, that's really good," he says, relief clearly evident in his voice.

"It's for my sister," I explain.

"Whoa, you mean the one that's in sixth grade?!" he yells again.

"Shane, shush! Yes, I only have one sibling," I say.

"So is it with the dude that was in my closet?" he asks me.

"Yeah, so back to the original question. Size of the average fourteen year old?" I ask him, reverting back to the original subject.

"Well, I'd recommend these for you," he says as he pulls out some Trojans.

"Medium length? He's only fourteen," I ask him, seriously confused.

"Well, I'm just guessing right here," he defends himself.

"I don't know anything about this shit. Might as well take it," I sigh, exasperated as I walk to the cashier.

"Hey, I'll pay for it," he offers once I get in line.

"No, Gina already gave me twenty bucks. A box of twelve for fifteen dollars? Wow!" I exclaim.

The cashier was one of the guys from school that I recognized in the hall. He had long, brown skater hair. "Whoa, Shane, getting naughty here, aren't we?" he says, giving both of us suggestive winks. "Yeah, Dave, me and Jenny here are in for a wild night," he replies before grabbing the bag and dragging me out of there. "He was just kidding!" I yell to Dave. He yells back, "Sure he was! Have fun, guys!"

"Shane, why didn't you just deny that?" I ask him as we get in his car.

"I'm not really sure, to tell you the truth. I haven't been laid since school started," he replies.

"Wait, is that a long time for you," I curiously question him.

"I'm not sure what'll happen if I don't fuck some girl soon," he says.

"I so didn't need to know that, man. What happened to the whole 'Sex with those girls just feels empty' shit?" I ask.

"Okay, I'm considering that," he says, sounding really arrogant.

"Yeah, you keep telling yourself that. I need to make a stop at Staples," I tell him.

"Oh yeah, your stuff got burned down. I'll pay for everything," he offers.

"No wait, I will," I say. He's spent so much money on me already.

"Where's your money then?" he asks.

"Oh, good point. You've just been spending too much on me," I point out.

"Hey, I want to. You're one of my best friends now," he says.

"Wow, you're freakishly nice sometimes, you know," I say.

"Only because I'm that awesome," he smirks.

I had to get about four binders, a whole bunch of new notebooks, and another calculator. Shane got me the most expensive TI-84. Something 'Nspire? Yeah, I think so. I couldn't stop thanking him enough as I got out of his car. "Don't worry, it's no problem," he reassures me. I thank him again before he drives to his house. I am the most lucky/cursed girl, EVER!

Lucky because I have friends that really care, cursed because I've got sluts trying to destroy my life. I guess it'll all work out in the end, won't it? I put the bags in my room before walking over to Gina's to see her and Eric simply watching TV.

"Hey, I got the condoms," I tell them.

"You know, Jenny, I thought about it. You're right, neither me nor Eric are ready to have sex," she says.

"You mean I just embarrassed myself in front of a school mate just for you to change your mind?" I ask her.

"Eric and I had a long talk while you were gone. We decided that we'll be going steady, and I'm going to wait a couple years before we do 'it'," she reasons.

"Well, how about you wait 'til you're sixteen, because if you don't, you won't have a real sweet sixteen," I tell her.

"Oh my God, are you serious?!" she asks me.

"Yeah, I'm not lying. So what do I do with these things?" I ask.

"You know, you can keep them. You might need them sooner or later," she says before slamming the door in my face.

Trust me, I wouldn't be needing these things anytime soon. I'm just glad that my sister finally came to her senses. This is so unreal. My tween sister forcing me to buy her condoms, then rejecting them once I do just that. I put the bag in my closet and get ready for bed. Ugh, the drama of it all.

**A/N - Yes, eleven year olds do that these days.. A couple of them.. I know that seems unreal, but Gina's not really the innocent one. Tweens these days think that they know everything, and that they're ready for everything when in the end, they really aren't. Gina came to her senses. Sigh**

**Two updates in one day?! You guys sure are lucky!! I know this chapter really sucked, but I wanted to get the Gina issue out of the way. And continue the Morgan/Angela one!**

**Review please!**


	20. Fucking Up and a ReCap

**A/N - Holy shit, I got nearly 700 hits Thursday! Okay, I am fucking pissed. It's like my mom and brother work together to make sure that I never touch my laptop, and they drag me places when I should be at home. WHAT THE FUCK?! On with this very late update.**

I put in my new notebooks and binders into my brand new backpack. I like this one better. It's bigger, and it's black and blue. Really nice combination of colors if you ask me. I still can't believe that Shane's being so nice to me. He's supposed to be a jerky bastard.

I walk out of the house after breakfast, backpack slung on one shoulder and see that Shane's there once again in front of my house. This is becoming pretty routine now. I open the front passenger door, swing my extremely heavy backpack in, and get in and strap myself.

"That looks like a heavy load," he says pointing to the new backpack.

"Well, thanks for getting me everything, again. You really helped out," I thank him.

"Seriously, it's no problem. If we can buy condoms together, me helping you with school supplies is nothing," he reassures me.

"Oh yeah, the condoms. You don't think Dave would tell anyone, right?" I ask, seriously worried.

"What? That we're having sex? I don't think he'd tell anybody that," he answers.

I scoff before saying, "What's there to tell? We're just friends, on a very, very platonic level."

He frowns before asking me, "Well, are you and Nate just friends?"

"Yeah, totally. You guys are both my friends, and so is Jason," I tell him.

He doesn't say anything to that for the rest of the short ride. What'd I do? All I did was compare him and Nate's friendships to Jason. Sure, I spent more time with Shane and Nate, but I still felt the same for all of them. Well, I'm pretty sure I do.

I walk to the front office to ask about the whole locker issue. They assign me a locker closer to my homeroom and give me a lock and combination. I walk into homeroom with my fresh supplies and sit down next to Nate. He shoves a copy of the latest US Weekly magazine at me.

"Flip to page 68," he tells me. I do just that, and I see an article about the fashion show. Page 68 were pictures from the event with captions underneath them. There was a couple of the models, Iman and Dave Bowie, Mrs. Grey, but then there was one of me and him with his hand on my knee. We were laughing at something.

I start reading the caption and I'm seriously shocked. It says, "One of Denise's very cute sons seems to be getting cozy with this 'friend' right here." Apparently, the person who wrote this article is a girl, and she said that Nate was hot in her article, and that he has older brothers. Also, something about how nice his mom was.

"Well, so what? They've got a picture of us together," I say to him.

"It's just.. I really like this picture. We look really happy," he tries explaining why he showed me it in the first place.

"Your mom seems to be getting more publicity. Apparently Lindsay Lohan likes her new Fall line?" I ask as I read one of the article's statements.

"Lindsay's an alcoholic whore," he says, disgusted.

"Wow, reminds me of a certain somebody with the initials SG," I humor him.

"Nice one!" he exclaims before high-fiving me.

I'm still laughing about homeroom as I walk to PE. The class seems empty without Morgan, Cassie, Erica, Brian and Paul. I hear a small group of girls talking to each other. I caught the words "Jenny" and "Nate" in the same sentence, so I try my best to coyly listen to the conversation.

"I just read the latest edition of US Weekly, and there's this pic of Jenny and Nate together," this girl with black and purple hair says. She was wearing a lot of black clothes, too.

"Kate, we've known about your crush on Nate since like, forever. It's not like he's dating Jenny or anything," a girl, wearing the same amount of black assures Kate. Her hair was simply brunette. I can't tell what their eye colors were due to their heavy make-up.

"Anne, he put me through so much torture, though," Kate says to Anne.

"It's not his fault he was creeped out because you kept a shrine of him in your closet, and told him about it," a girl with wavy black hair says to Kate.

"Nancy, just shut the fuck up, okay? He's shown no interest in any girl before, and now he's drooling over Asian trash. You should've seen his face in the picture," Kate exclaims before breaking out into sobs.

Okay, I can't listen to this anymore. I quickly walk over to my squad and wait as Mr. Wendler starts taking role. Obviously, Kate's had a thing for Nate for quite some time, and she's mad that I'm his friend, I think. But she was crying now, and it was all my fault. I don't like making people cry like that. She doesn't seem that bad.

"I saw you listening to them," I hear Shane tell me as he sits down next to me.

"Wait, I thought I was being discreet," I say, confused.

"You actually did a pretty good job. Almost fooled me," he grins.

"That girl with the purple highlights-" I start before Shane cuts me off.

"She's been obsessed with Nate ever since kindergarten, apparently. I heard that she started doing drugs because Nate rejected her requests to go our with her."

"That's terrible. She shouldn't be getting into shit like that just because of Nate," I say to myself. She shouldn't be wasting her life like that.

"She's only one of the many girls that are obsessed with any of us brothers. There's more at different schools. We can't date all of them, you know," he says, trying to make me feel better.

"If you were trying to make me feel better, you're doing a crappy job. I mean, if so many girls want to hang out with you guys, I should let them," I tell him.

Before he could say anything, I walk up to Kate and her small group. I had an idea in my head, and I was hoping that Nate wouldn't hate me for this. I start praying to mother nature that Nate won't get mad. Yes, I said mother nature. She's the only one that listens to my prayers. **(Personal experience. Don't ask!)**

"Hey, guys. I'm Jenny. Could I borrow Kate from you for just a sec?" I ask them.

They all have shocked expressions. "Yeah, go ahead," Nancy tells me.

"Thanks," I reply as I get a hold of Kate's arm and drag her to the opposite end of the gym.

"Okay, I have an offer that I don't think you could refuse," I start once we were far away.

"It'd be illegal to do the things that I'd want to do to you," she bluntly states. Wow, she's pretty straightforward.

"Tomorrow is Nate's birthday. I could get you a date with him to go rollerblading," I say, ignoring what she just said.

"No, you're lying. How can you possibly do that?" she asks with wide eyes.

"I've got my ways. Do you want it or not?" I ask her.

"Y-Yes, of course! Oh my God, I've been trying to get a date with him for years! It's been hard since we're never in the same grade," she replies.

"Whoa, wait, you mean you're an upperclassman?!" I yell. This means that Nate could go to Homecoming and not be alone!

"I'm a sophomore, what's the biggie?" she asks, confusion evident in her voice.

"Uh, how about you take him to Homecoming instead? It sounds better than rollerblading, right?" I ask, trying to convince her to take him to Homecoming.

"Yeah, if you could make him my date for the Homecoming dance, I'll definitely owe you something huge," she says.

"Okay, just make sure you don't have contact with him until the night of the dance. Don't wanna shock him.. What color dress are you wearing?" I instruct her.

"Oh, I'm wearing a purple and black one," she answers. Oh, I should've seen that one coming.

"Awesome, Nate will see you on the dance floor on Friday night! Oh, and could you please give me the ticket on Friday?" I ask her.

"Oh, sure thing, anything," she says.

"Sweet. Nate will see you the night of the dance!" I happily exclaim before skipping my way to Shane's side.

Oh, my God, what'd I just do? Obviously, Kate hates me, and now I just got her to be Nate's date to the dance. I mean, Kate doesn't seem so bad. She just has a shrine dedicated to him, and apparently tortured herself when he rejected her requests to date him. I should stop before I cancel the plan, and I don't want Kate hating me more. Shit, what'd I get myself into?

"Hey, Jenner, you look worried," Shane says as I sat down on the bleachers next to him.

"Oh, trust me. I have very big reasons to be," I tell him, not looking in his direction.

Using my peripheral vision, I saw him raise his eyebrows before asking, "And what would those reasons be?"

"You'll find out soon enough. Don't worry," I say before going into the locker rooms.

I knew that I was early, but I didn't want to talk to Shane anymore, or anyone really for a couple minutes. I don't know if I just did something good, or if I just set up a total catastrophe. I'm rubbing my oncoming headache as I walk into Biology.

"So, new books?" is the first thing Nicole asks me since I was early. I guess we had some time to talk.

"Yeah, Shane got them. We also bought condoms together yesterday," I tell her like it was nothing.

"And you tell me to not be doing anything with Jason?! Oh, that is so hypocritical of you," she scoffs.

"They were for Gina, not me or Shane," I correct her. Her eyes go wide but she doesn't ask about it.

**XoLAGOHxO**

At lunch, I wait until Nate gets up to throw away his trash before making Shane and Nicole huddle with me.

"Guys, I just think I fucked up," I whisper to them in our huddle.

"Wait, hold on. What do you mean?" Nicole asks.

"I got Nate to a date to Homecoming," I inform them.

"Well, that's good. It means he won't be left out," Shane states.

"It's with the girl Kate," I say.

"WHAT?!" Shane screams, drawing the attention of everyone in the cafeteria.

"So, what's going on?" Fauzul appears out of nowhere and asks us.

"Yeah, I'm getting pretty curious," another girl pops up. They were huddling with us, too.

"Whoa, wait, who are you?" I ask her.

"She's my disappearing accomplice, Caroline," Fauzul tells me.

"And a member of the drama club," she adds.

I couldn't tell how she looked, except that she had light brown wavy hair. They both walk away before anybody else could say anything. Oh, right. I almost forgot! Shane was just flipping out because Kate's taking Nate to the dance. I was about to mention it again when Nate sits down in his seat. Drat!

"Uh, Shane, what was that all about?" Nate warily asks Shane.

"Well.. Nicole just told me that she and Jason are dating," he says after a couple seconds.

"Wait.. We are?" Nicole asks, really confused.

"Yes, you guys are. Just started today. Right?" he asks her.

"Umm, yeah, Shane's right. Jason and I are officially a couple," she says before excusing herself to go to the bathroom.

I sneak a glance at Shane. He mouths the words 'we need to talk' to me before throwing away his trash. He'd better not tell Nate, because if he did, I would be dead. DEAD. Wait, Nate wouldn't kill me, would he? He obviously has a bad past with this Kate girl, but my soft side just had to take over. Aw, shit.

**XoLAGOHxO**

By the end of the day, the talk of the school was of course, me. Were the students talking about the fire yesterday? A couple were. How about that 'accident' in gym? It was yesterday's news. Maybe me possibly sleeping with both Nate and Shane at the same time? Oh yes, that was the current topic on everybody's minds.

Word about the whole condom adventure yesterday spread out. Whether it was Dave, somebody else, or if a person overheard, people knew. That was the important part. People thought I was sleeping with Nate, too, because of the stupid tabloids. I mean, we looked friendly in that picture, right? I don't see anything flirtatious!

Another important thing. My reputation as the school's biggest prude is probably shattered by now. I can't just tell them that my little sister wanted to have sex! Emphasis on wanted. Hopefully she still has some sense left in her. Which is why I'm sitting at home, not with Shane or Nate. If I went home with them again, it would just raise more suspicion.

Let's just quickly sum up everything that's happened so far in my high school life.

- I poured water ice on Shane's head.

- Angela put a snake in my locker.

- Morgan's groupies tried pouring blue paint on me.

- My sister locked me in a closet.

- That same sister is very promiscuous.

- I walked in on Shane and Angela about to have sex.

- Shane tried to flash me.

- I let Nate sleep over at my house, in my bed.

- I went to New York City with Nate.

- Shane lets me ride in his car almost everyday now.

- My sister was having pending thoughts about having sex.

- Angela paid Brian and Paul to drop me to possible death.

- Angela, Morgan, Cassie and Erica burned down my locker.

- My picture is now in a tabloid.

- I bought condoms with Shane.

- Supposedly Nicole is currently going out with Jason.

- I'm known as one of the sluts now.

- I got Kate a date with Nate.

All of this has happened, and now I have rollerblading and the dance to look forward to. And the nine months of freshman year after that. Oh, what else could possibly happen?

**A/N - Sorry this sucked! Though it may seem like it, I didn't have a lot of time to write this. I started it over like, three times, replied to messages from three computers. I hate work, and I have to finish two books for summer reading by Tuesday. This was a re-cap chapter, and also a starter for a whole new set of conflicts. Seriously, just two weeks, and all of that shit's happened? Jenny must have some life..**


	21. Changing Moods

**A/N - Congrats to ****kobrakai-vs-dragon ninja for being my 200****th**** reviewer! So once again, I was dragged out of my house to a booze party. Imagine a bunch of my drunk uncles and some guys who owned motorcycles singing karaoke. Then little kids singing karaoke. And then my cousin Jen texting on her Sidekick like there was no tomorrow and complaining about her cold sore.**

**Then when Jen leaves, I'm up in Tracy's room after Tracy got home from work. Then there's this incident with the lacy bra where it goes.**

**Me - "Omg, you just threw your clothes on the chair! Omg, you just threw your bra at me! It's lacy too!**

**Tracy - "Omg, you just threw my bra at me!"**

**And chargers in laps.. never mind, don't ask about that… …….**

"Slut," I hear somebody say on as I walk into homeroom.

Don't you guys hate rumors? I sure do, and the latest one is that I'm a whore who sleeps with two different guys at once. Of course, me being me, I'm not gonna fight back. I'll just hold everything in my thoughts. I swear, I'm about to explode one day. How can the people go from being on my side to totally thinking that I'm some trash? Is this entire school bipolar? No wait, they're multipolar.

"I'm like, sooo pissed right now," I say to Nate before angrily sitting down. Ouch, that made me hurt my butt.

"Yeah, I heard the rumors," he replies before frowning.

"It's another reason to really not like my sister," I groan before putting my head in my crossed arms on the desk.

"Wow, you make me feel like I have the best siblings ever, even though they really suck sometimes," he laughs out loud.

"Oh yeah, happy birthday!" I exclaim very loudly. I then start sing the Happy Birthday song.

Nate blushes before muttering, "Thanks."

"And don't think I forgot about the birthday punches, either. I owe you fifteen of them!" I tell him before punching his arm really hard fifteen times.

"Ow, why'd you have to do that?" he asks me before laughing.

"Oh yeah, and a punch for good luck, too!" I say before punching him one last time.

"You know, you're lucky you're you. If you were some other person, you'd be dead right now," he jokes. Well, I think he's joking, I mean.

"Yes, I have the amazing privilege to punch Nate Grey whenever I want," I laugh before continuing, "Don't worry, I won't punch you anymore. Next up is Jason."

Jason's birthday was going to be in November. I'm lucky that my birthday's in the summer since there's really no one to punch me. Except for that one summer when Nicole totally killed my arm.. Ouch. My mom noticed the bruises and asked me about it during the 4th of July party we hold at Jen's house every year. I told her, "It's just this American tradition." And she said, "Kids these days, America's making them messed up." I sometimes agree with that statement of hers.

It seems like the only people who aren't against me right now are Shane, Nate, Jason, Nicole, Kate, Anne and Nancy. Kate, Anne, Nancy and I were actually talking to each other in gym.

"So like, the rumors about you aren't true?" Nancy asks me.

"Gross, of course not. I'll admit that I've never even kissed a guy before," I reassure her.

"I got Nate a present for his birthday," Kate tells us.

"Don't tell me it's a card professing your undying love for him," Anne warns her.

"No no, it's more like.. A tie, for Homecoming," she says dreamily. "It matches with my dress."

"Hey, how about I give it to him since I have a couple more classes with him today," I offer up. I really hope she doesn't have contact with Nate. That would ruin the plan.

"Wait, why can't I give it to him? I mean, I'm his date, not you," she starts protesting.

"Well.. He believes that it's bad luck to see his date before the dance," I say, making it up as I go. Wait, doesn't that only apply for weddings?

"Wait, isn't that only for weddings, though?" she asks as if she's reading my mind. "Aw, that's so romantic, he must really like me to compare the dance to a WEDDING," she gets that dreamy look back on again.

I couldn't help but feel an intense pang of jealousy as she said that. Nate doesn't like her! He can't like her, he's creeped out by her. He doesn't even know he's gonna go to the dance. Besides, Nate and I are going rollerblading together today at the skating rink. After gym was over, I stopped by Kate's locker and got Nate's tie. It was black with purple stripes.

I have to put this tie in my locker before anyone sees me holding a random box. Doing this meant that I was late for Biology, but Mrs. Mullen was totally fine with it. I'm still wondering when she's gonna have that baby. People were still giving me nasty comments about the rumors. I could seriously care less, though.

Right as I was about to sit down at the table at lunch, Shane grabs my arm and drags me out into the boys' bathroom. I'm standing in here with Shane in the BOYS' BATHROOM! I see a random guy get out one of the stalls with his fly still unzipped. He sees me and Shane then darts out of there. Shane checks around to make sure that we're alone before he starts talking.

"Okay, I need details on the whole Kate issue. NOW," he demands.

"All I did was guarantee her a date with Nate to Homecoming," I admit.

"And does Nate even know about this?" he asks.

I stutter before saying, "I have a plan to tell him when we go rollerblading today."

"Wait, you guys are going rollerblading? Why?" his eyes go dark again for a sec.

"Well, he asked me to, and it's his birthday, so I agreed to go," I tell him the truth.

"Look, Kate's a crazy chick, okay. She nearly committed suicide thanks to Nate, it wasn't just drugs," he says.

"Wait, so if she finds out that Nate doesn't know…" I start.

"Something really bad could happen," Shane finishes for me.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I didn't tell Shane about the whole wedding comparison that Kate made. That would only make him feel worse. I was in the car with Nate and Jason, who was driving us to Green Oak's rollerblading rink. I was planning on telling Nate about Kate today at the rink, but now I'm having my doubts. After we rented some rollerblades, we started playing air hockey.

"Nate, you really suck at this game," I say as I got in yet another goal. I was beating him 5-1.

"You always beat me at guy stuff. I feel like a girl now," he says before crossing his arms like a kid who wasn't getting what they wanted.

"Hey, it's the couple skate right now, let's go!" I exclaim before dragging him to the rink. He nearly fell while I just stood there.

"Did I ever tell you that I can't skate?" he asks me as he got his balance together.

"Nope. Did I ever tell you that I'm awesome at this stuff?" I ask him before skating away just to show off. I stop and turn around only to see him slowly wobbling to me. Aw, poor Nate, he must be so embarrassed.

"Wow, took you long enough to get here," I tease him. There were a bunch of other couples skating, too.

"You guys have to hold hands," an employee tells us.

"Wait, why would we have to hold hands?" I ask him.

"It's the couple skate, you're supposed to hold hands," he orders us. I grab Nate's hand and skate off. I saw two guys skating together, but the dude didn't make them hold hands. What is he, sexist?

"Hey, I'm starting to get the hang of this," Nate says before we started speeding up.

"At least you're a quick learner," I tell him before smiling.

"Hey, not everyone's holding hands," he points out. I look around to find him correct. Only half the people were holding hands like us.

"I had a funky experience once. My friend had this birthday party at a skating rink, and I skated with one of my gal friends during the couple's skate. One of the dudes working there forced us to hold hands," I reminisce.

"Wait, did he think that you guys were lesbians or something?" he asks with his mouth hanging open.

"I'm not sure, but when two guys were skating together, he didn't make them hold hands. This feels like déjà vu," I say. **(True story, too. Oo)**

"Wow, people really do think that you're a lesbian. First that dude, then Angela," he laughs.

"Yeah, I have to admit it's really embarrassing. Did I mention that you have a date to the Homecoming dance?" I decide to mention Homecoming now.

"What?!" he screeches before skating directly into a wall. People turn and stare at him while I try getting him to stand up. A teenage girl skates up to us, holding hands with a guy.

"Hey, you're Nate Grey, right? Your mom's the fashion designer? I saw you guys in US Weekly together. So, you're like, seriously going out?" she asks all at once.

"No no, we're not going out or anything. Just friends," I correct her. "And yeah, the one and only Nate Grey."

He shakes her hand when he finally got his balance on the blades. "I love your mom's new line," she says before going off with who I supposed was her boyfriend.

"Let's go get some food," I suggest. We return the rollerblades and put our shoes back on, then order some fries and burgers. I wasn't even sitting down before he starts shooting me questions.

"So, who's taking me to Homecoming?" he asks.

"That should remain a secret until the dance," I tell him.

"Wait, where's the ticket then?" he continues asking.

"I'm gonna get it for you tomorrow," I reply.

"How about a tie?"

"Don't worry, your date already solved that issue. It's in my locker," I reassure him.

"Is it some crazy suicidal emo chick?" he asks, as if reading my mind. Are my thoughts out in the open today or something?

"Nope, don't worry," I say, crossing my fingers behind my back.

"Will she be jealous if I dance with you?" he questions. That question really took me off guard.

"Uh, I'm not sure," I lie.

"Well, looking at the birthday cards shoved in my locker today, it's gotta be one of those girls," he starts reasoning. Boy, I hope that he believes that since I begged Kate not to contact him at all.

"Sure, okay," is all I say before eating my burger.

"No matter what she says, I'll have at least one dance with you," he tells me.

"Uh, I don't really dance. Unless it's the Cha-Cha Slide, but that's self explanatory," I try telling him. If he dances with me, Kate will go bonkers.

"Just promise me one slow song, okay? I'll teach you," he offers.

I just couldn't say no to him, so I say, "If you teach me, I'll promise you one slow dance."

He grins before saying, "Perfect."

I smile back at him, but on the inside, I'm screaming at myself, "WHAT THE FUCK HAVE YOU DONE?!"

**XoLAGOHxO**

You wouldn't be able to guess it. Oh wait never mind, you would. There's another booze party tonight, or "family gathering" as my mom still likes to call it. She told me to invite Shane, but instead, I dragged Nate along. So here we are in Jen's room while I'm doing my best to not listen to the my drunk uncles and their friends downstairs.

"Dude, I swear, this is a fucking cold sore!" Jen says, pointing to the side of her mouth. Apparently the cold sore was starting to swell up.

"How about you go to CVS and get some of that Abreva stuff?" I suggest.

"Yeah, I'll get Dave to drive me there since he just got off work," she says before dialing something on her new Sidekick.

"You guys wanna come with me?" she asks us, going down the steps to the first floor of the house.

"Yeah, it's better than staying here," I say before dragging Nate down with me.

We stand in the front lawn, waiting for Dave to show up. Once he does, Jen quickly introduces Nate and Dave.

"Wow, Dave, nice tattoos," Nate says to him.

"Yeah, thanks," was all Dave replies.

"Man, this cold sore's getting worse," Jen whines as she looks into the reflective back of her phone.

"Wow, this is some birthday," Nate mumbles.

"What, it's your birthday?" Jen asks.

"Yeah, we went rollerblading today, and celebrated it early last week," I say.

"Wait, as in a date?" Jen looks back with raised eyebrows.

"Dude, you know me. I don't date anyone," I tell her.

"No, you're Shane's date to the dance," Nate reminds me. "Which is tomorrow night," he continues.

"Wait, you mean that hot dude that was at my house last week?" she asks me.

"Jen, I'm right here," Dave says.

"Whoops, sorry Dave," she jokes around.

"Yeah, that so called "hot dude" is Shane," I confirm.

"Whoo, we're here, let's get the heck out of this thing," Jen says before rushing inside the CVS.

This is pretty funny since I was in this place not too long ago buying condoms with Shane. After Jen gets the medicine for her cold sore, she goes to the back of the store and we all follow her.

"Condoms?" I bluntly ask her.

"Yeah, we're kinda running low," she says before pulling out a pack.

"I just bought a couple the other day, too," I tell her.

"Whoa, Jenny, you're supposed to be the innocent one in this family," she exclaims, shocked.

"They were meant for that bitch of a sister I have," I say.

"Eh, I saw it coming. I never liked that girl," she tells me as we walk to the check-out line.

"I didn't either," I reply. I saw that Dave from school was walking around, hoping to assist anyone that would need it.

I walk up to him when he wasn't looking at me and tap his shoulder. He turns around and looks startled to see me. He should be because I'm pretty sure that he started the rumor that ruined my nonexistent reputation. I'm getting really mad right now.

"Oh, Jenny, what's up?" he nervously asks.

"You cocksucker, you fucking started that fucking rumor about me," I start cursing.

"Well, isn't it true? Aren't you sleeping with Shane?" he asks me. He actually believes that I'm sleeping with Shane.

"No, I don't sleep with anybody, especially manwhores like him, okay? Now you better tell people the truth, or you will definitely regret it," I warn him.

"You're just a little girl. You can't threaten me," he defends himself.

"Okay, if you clear up the rumors, I'll owe you a favor," I offer up.

He ponders the thought for a moment before saying, "Okay, I've had a crush on Kate for a long time, but I know that she likes Nate, who likes you. Get me a date with her and we have a deal."

Wait, huh? What'd he just say? "Did you just say that Nate likes me?" I ask him.

"Jenny, I heard that you're a smart kid. Why don't you see it? Everyone knows by now," he says before patting my back and walking away to assist somebody.

"Wait, what about Shane?!" I loudly ask him.

"He does, too," he yells before walking away for real.

I don't believe him. He's lying. Shane doesn't like anyone, and Nate's just my friend. They're both just my friends. Why can't I hang out with both guys without it being a problem?

After the party was over, Nate and I were sitting in my backyard, talking with each other. I have to find out some way if what Dave said was true. It's seriously making me nauseous.

"Nate, I have a serious question," I tell him.

"Yeah, Jenny, what is it?" he asks me.

"You and Shane are my friends, right?" I ask him.

"Yeah, of course we are," he says.

"And we're just friends, right Nate?" I ask. I hope that he says yes.

"Jenny, what do you mean?" he starts getting worried. I don't wanna worry him with my petty feelings.

"What I'm trying to say is, it's all platonic, right?" I try explaining.

"Only if you want it to be. I mean, these past couple weeks have been intense, and we're close now, like, extremely close," he says. That's just confusing me.

"How close?" I ask him. I'm starting to feel sick.

"Jenny, do we have to talk about this now? How about after the dance?" he tries avoiding the subject.

"Nate, how fucking close?!" I start raising my voice.

"How close are you and Shane then, huh?" he angrily asks me.

"As close as I am to you, now answer the question," I plead.

"No, I won't let him," he says through clenched teeth.

"Why not? Aren't we just friends? Isn't that how it's supposed to be? Just friends?" I ask him.

He roughly grips my arm before saying, "No, I don't want it to be that way between us."

"Nate, what do you mean?" I ask him. I think I already know the answer, but I need to hear him say it. My arm was starting to really hurt now.

Next thing I know, I can feel his soft lips on mine as his hand on my neck tilts my head back. After a couple seconds, he pulls away from me, a look of hurt on his face. He's about to run away before I grab onto his shirt, ripping it. I didn't care, though.

"Don't run away," I hoarsely whisper. I don't know why I was crying now.

I could sense that Nate was trying to silently apologize to me. He gives me a sympathetic look before running off. I fall into a heap on the ground. He just kissed me, and he just ran away. He ran away from me. Why did he run away?

**A/N - OMG, he just kissed her.. Then ran away. Why would Nate be running away? Tune in next time to see.. Are you Nate lovers happy now??**


	22. Homecoming and the Crashed Party

**I still think that high school's scary. My schedule totally got switched up and I keep getting lost! There's hardly any freshmen in my Geometry class. **

**Oh yeah, REALLY IMPORTANT; My mom says that the story's taking over my life, so she wants me to either discontinue it, or update slower. If I don't comply, she just might make me delete it. Seriously, it's not taking up THAT much time. But with high school, and already getting assigned essays, I need to update slower to catch up with my life since I spend a lot of time on each and every single chapter. Okay, continue on plz. ****J**

I wake up to the sound of my extremely annoying alarm clock. My lips still burn from Nate's kiss. I'm still pondering the thought of him running way. It was as if he rejected me. You don't steal a girl's first kiss, then run away! That's like, not right. Simply not right at all. Suddenly, it finally registers in my mind. Nate kissed me. OH MY GOD, what do I do now? How can I talk to him? What about the dance?

My mind is in a constant haze as I get ready for school. I have to put last night behind me since tonight was the dance, and there was the after party. I've gotta be my happy self and look good as Shane Grey's date. I'm pretty sure that Shane's not gonna ask me anything about last night. Boy was I wrong.

"Nate's shirt got ripped," is the first thing he says to me as I open the door to the car.

"Oh, really, did it?" I ask him like I'm totally oblivious.

"And not to sound weird, but his lips looked really different," he says before wrinkling his forehead.

"He probably ate something spicy," I try lying.

"Nate doesn't like spicy food," he points out. Shit, I didn't know that.

"Well then, I really don't know," I say, trying to change the subject.

"You were with him the entire time, Jenny. He was nearly crying when he got home," he keeps pushing.

"Can we talk about this after the dance?" I beg Shane. Damn, I just used one of Nate's quotes.

Unlike me, Shane doesn't disagree, and drops the subject. It's a good thing that Shane's a pretty understanding guy. How can I possibly not feel awkward around Nate now? Right now, all I want to really know is why he ran away. That part really hurt me.

I get into homeroom and see that Nate's not looking at me. He's looking in the opposite direction. It's official, he's ignoring me. I'm so infuriated with him right now. He was the one that kissed me! Then he just ran off like that.

I put my hand on his shoulder and hiss out, "We. Need. To Talk." Ooh, that was a rough approach.

He refuses to even answer me or acknowledge me, so I put my thumb over his pressure point and squeeze tight. He lets out a low scream before roughly grabbing my hand and putting it off of him.

"Don't touch me. Just leave me alone," he mutters.

"I can touch you if I want to," I simply state. He's never refused a touch before, right?

"I never gave you the right," he turns around and glares at me.

"Get up," I order him. This can't be said in class.

"No, I won't," he refuses like a little brat.

"Yes, you are," I say before digging my nails into his arm.

If he's being stubborn, I can only force him to come with me. He winces and finally gives up and walks out of the room, but not before putting my arm back to my side. He really was being a jackass today. Besides, he hurt my arms last night. I was only taking a little bit of revenge. Excuse me for doing what most people would do.

Once we were both in the now virtually empty hall, I finally start asking him the questions.

"Why did you run away?" I ask.

"I have my reasons. Reasons that you don't need to know," he says, looking away from me.

"Yes, I do need to know them. You don't steal a girl's first kiss then run away like it was a mistake," I try to calmly tell him. I was starting to get angry and sad all at the same time.

"As I said before; I have my reasons. You really shouldn't know," he repeats himself.

"Just fucking tell me!" I yell.

"I broke the guy code. I fucking broke it," he mumbles.

"What do you mean you broke it?" I ask him. The guy code? What was he talking about.

"One of the biggest guy rules; if your best friend or brother likes a girl, you don't pursue her. You just can't," his voice was getting high now.

"What friend? What brother?" I whisper. I think I already know the answer.

"Who do you fucking think it is?!" he screams. "It's Shane! When will you get it through your head?!"

Why didn't I see it before? The hidden jealousy, all of those gestures. It was so obvious, and I was the only oblivious one in the whole situation. Nicole was happy with Jason right now, but I have no idea if I like any of these guys like that.

"Why didn't you see it?" he asks me, his voice still high and broken.

"I didn't want to," I finally realize. The whole time, I refused to believe it. I was blocking it all out.

"Look, let's try to put last night behind us, okay? But I don't want to forget it," he suggests after calming down.

Instead of replying to his suggestion, I wrap my arms around his chest and give him one of the biggest hugs I could conjure up. I felt Nate hugging me back. So he ran away just because Shane had feelings for me. Personally, I couldn't blame him, but deep down, it still hurt. A lot. I guess the issue with Nate was somewhat solved, but then there was Shane. I wanted to avoid him for a bit. The bell rang, ruining the moment between us.

"How about we stay in Ms. Thimm's class this time?" he asks me.

"Awesome idea," I say before grabbing my books and heading for Ms. Thimm's room along with Nate.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I'm heading into Biology, hoping that Shane doesn't catch up with me. Oh yeah, I forgot to pray to mother nature, so he ends up doing just that. Why do all the gods hate me? I'm just about to step my foot into the class when he pulls me out. You know those fake smiles you give when you know you're guilty of something or don't really like someone? Yeah, that's plastered on my face right now.

"You skipped gym again," he says in an annoyed tone.

"Sorry, my ankle is kinda bugging me," I lie. I've been lying a lot lately. My knee was healing up pretty nicely, and my ankle doesn't hurt anymore.

"Are you going to be alright for the dance?" he asks.

"Don't worry, I'll be totally fine," I assure him.

Once he leaves, I let out an extremely loud breath. I was so scared that he would be suspicious! Maybe he is, but he just doesn't want me to know. Or maybe he's just seriously spacey. I mean, really. Jesus, I think way too much.

**XoLAGOHxO**

Okay, I'm pretty sure that I should be at home right now. Or at least getting ready for the dance. No wait, I guess I kinda am. Imagine being dragged to a some fancy hair salon and getting your hair done. It's just Homecoming! I mean, come one, it's no biggie.

"Girl, your hair is dry," a guy speaking in a very girly voice says. He seriously looks a lot like Kim Vo, that famous hair stylist that's always on E! He's Vietnamese, too! Well, half at least.

"Yeah, Treseme's directions for the conditioner are a bit too complicated for me. Uh, who brushes in their conditioner?" I ask him.

That's actually what the bottle tells me to do. Use a comb to comb in the conditioner. And to not use hands.. Or wear gloves? I get the point that it's salon quality hair, but people only have so much time on their hands. At least it smells kind of nice, either that, or they copy VO5. Or maybe VO5 copied them. Who knows?

"Look, there's a reason why it's called 'salon quality' hair, cuz you have to do all the stuff that hair stylists like me do," he tries explaining as he puts in some leave-in conditioner.

"Do I even look like a hair stylist?" I sarcastically ask.

"Girl, your mood will be fabulous once your hair's done," he says before waving a hand for dramatic effect.

"Nicole, how you doing there?" I ask her, since she was getting her hair done, too.

"They're making my highlights brighter, then straightening it," she replies.

"Ugh, apparently my hair's gonna get curled," I say.

"Nope, more like waves since your Asian hair can't seem to hold these holds," he says as he inspects some of the curls he just did.

"God, Shane sucks so much," I groan and wait for the entire process to be over and done with.

After about an hour, the guy, whose name turned out to be Charlie, finally spun me around so I could see myself in the mirror. Nicole was done long ago. Her hair looked really cute, and I'd assume that it's better than mine. My mouth drops when I see my reflection. It was simply waves, but it was so pretty! I reach out to touch it, to make sure that it's real, but Charlie slaps my hand away.

"Don't touch it! It'll ruin your hair," he instructs me.

"I can't believe that just this took an hour," I say instead of complimenting his work.

"I just had to make it perfect," he says in his girly voice.

"Yeah, it's pretty tight. Thanks dude!" I exclaim.

"Hey, Jenny, I'm gonna arrive at the dance separately with Jason," Nicole informs me. I can almost feel myself frowning before catching myself. I didn't want her to feel guilty or anything, but I couldn't help but feel I was getting ditched.

"Sure, see ya at the dance! Have fun getting ready and everything," I say.

**XoLAGOHxO**

Now came for the moment of truth. Shane, Nate and I had just arrived at the dance, and we're almost in the gym. I haven't seen Jason or Nicole yet. Shane's tie matched my dress while Nate's unknowingly matched Kate's. I seriously don't know how I'm going to do this. Shane's been giving me weird looks the entire ride, and I'm pretty sure it's because of Kate.

I get behind Nate and give him his ticket before I cover his eyes. I hope this will be a good idea, but I just thought of it up on the spot. Oh, Mother Nature, please let this work out for me!!

"Okay, when you see your date, don't act surprised. Act like you knew it all along. Act like you really like her. Seriously, just act, and act well," I whisper in his ear the instructions.

"Don't worry, I've got quite some acting skills," he reassures me. I really don't think that he won't be surprised.

"No, no matter what the outcome is, no matter who she is, no matter how much you hate her, you cannot show resistance towards her. There could be some serious consequences," I warn.

"Okay, don't tell me you set me up with a girl who's going to commit suicide if I reject her," he jokes. Boy, he doesn't know how right he truly is.

I start leading him into the gym, my hands still over his eyes. Shane's giving me a really serious glare right now. I think he's mad at me, too. I can hear the bass from "Dangerous" by Akon as we enter the gym. I start looking around the large mass of students for the very distinct hair of Kate. After a couple seconds, I easily spot her on the side, drinking some punch. I wonder if it's spiked with alcohol.

I take my hands off of Nate's eyes and quickly spin him around since we were getting close to Kate now. "Okay, Nate, promise me that you will be this girl's date tonight, or else I won't give you a single dance," I threaten him.

"Oh, come on, you don't need to do that. How bad could she be?" he asks before laughing over the pumping music. Ugh, these heels are seriously hurting my feet! Why did Shane opt to buy the five inch ones? I'm pretty sure they were less than that, but it felt like so much more.

I tug on Nate's shirt towards Kate's direction. Kate spots me and starts waving, with a huge smile on her face. Nate's still looking around, trying to figure out who his date was. Boy, I'm hoping this doesn't turn out disastrous.

"Hey, Kate! Nate's right here," I yell to her, pulling on his tux jacket towards her direction. I glance at his face and see a completely horrified expression.

I whisper, "Remember, act like you like her." His face immediately changes to his fake happy one, but it looks much more real. I'm guessing he's had quite a bit of practice.

"Don't forget, you knew all along," is the last thing I say to him before pushing him to Kate.

She looks so happy with him right now. Tonight, I've gotta somehow make Dave end up with Kate, and Nate give Nate one dance. I've also got to be Shane's ideal date. And then there was the after party. I start singing along to "Dangerous" as I walk my way back to Shane.

"Okay, can you dance to this song?" he asks me once I reach him.

"Wait, aren't you gonna ask about Kate and Nate?" I wonder aloud.

"We'll find out all about it at the after-party," he says before dragging me away from the refreshments.

"Okay, the best advice I can give you is; Just dance," he advises before he started dancing. It was the way those guys who were "too cool to act like a fool" danced. The other popular guys were dancing like him, too. Even with teacher chaperones here, the girls somehow managed to grind on the guys.

"You know, where's Lady GaGa when you need her?" I ask him, not joking at all. Come on, "Just Dance" is an awesome song to dance to! Even if you don't know how. Just as I said that, the song started on the gym speakers.

"Wow, it's like people are reading your mind these days," he says as we start dancing. I wasn't focusing on Shane, but I was looking around for Nicole and Jason. After a minute, I have success and I see them dancing rather.. Yeah, you guys should know what I mean. She is wearing this cute light pink dress that bubbled out and got tight around the thighs. What do you call those things?

Okay, now that I've found the happy couple, it's time to look for the not-so-happy one. The song changes to "Fall for You" by Secondhand Serenade before I could find Nate. I can't help but smile, though. I love Secondhand Serenade. I feel Shane put his arms around my waist, so I link my hands behind his neck and slow dance with him.

"But hold your breath, because tonight will be the night that I will fall for you over again," Shane starts softly singing. I never knew that Shane is such a talented singer. His voice is so soothing when he's singing this soft. Just as I was getting into the song, and Shane, the track changes to "Low" by Flo Rida. I immediately pull away from Shane and start dancing to the hip-hop beat. When the lyrics got to the booty-slapping part, I felt Shane spank my ass. I quickly turn to him and shoot him my glare.

"Hey, not cool!" I yell over the music.

"You're my date, I'm allowed to do that," he replies before grabbing my hands and dancing with me.

I guess I'll let it slide this time, but the next time he does that, his hands are so getting chopped off. I'm still trying to look for Nate and Kate, and I finally found them just as the song was coming to an end. They seem to be having a good time, though Nate still looks a bit uncomfortable. I keep my eyes on them for the next couple songs. When a slow one comes on, I excuse myself from Shane and try to start walking over to Nate.

"Hey, Jenny, where are you going?" he asks me.

"I promised Nate one slow dance," I tell him.

"Why? Kate's his date, and you're mine," he starts protesting.

"A promise is a promise, Shane. I'm sorry," I apologize before I start walking over to Nate.

From where I'm standing, I can see Dave's eyes on Kate's, and once in a while glare at Nate. His jealousy is completely obvious. I slightly wave my arms to catch his attention, and he sees me. He gives me a questioning look, then I motion with my hands, trying to say, "You and Kate, me and Nate. Dance to this song." He seems to get it because he starts walking over to Kate, so I start walking over to Nate.

"I owe you that dance," I whisper in his ear.

"Wait, what's going on?" Kate asks me.

"Kate, may I have this dance?" Dave asks her before bowing. Aw, he's so romantic.

"Dave, I'm Nate's date tonight, so no," she bluntly states.

"Kate, you should have at least one dance with him. Do it for me," Nate tries convincing her.

"Sure, anything for you," she says before reluctantly taking Dave's hand as he pulls her away to somewhere else to dance.

"Looks like you and I are alone," Nate smirks.

"Well, if you can call being in a gym with a bunch of people alone," I laugh before putting a hand on his shoulder and the other in his hand.

"Wow, even with those high heels on, you're still so much shorter than me," he jokes.

"Ah! Jerk! It's not my fault that you and your brothers are tall and I'm cursed with the typical Asian shortness," I say before smiling.

"Oh yeah, we need to talk about Kate," he tells me. My smile drops from my face.

"I'm really sorry. When I promised her that she'd be your date, I didn't know about your guys' past. It was really ignorant of me, but I didn't want you to be alone tonight," I try explaining.

"It looks like her and Dave are enjoying themselves," he points his head to my right, and I follow the direction. There was Dave and Kate, dancing happily together. Her head was on his chest as they swayed. It was such a cute sight.

"Aw, it's like they're perfect for each other," I say.

"She started liking him pretty fast, don't you think?" he asks.

"I heard that the harder and faster you fall for somebody, the longer it's gonna last," I inform him. I forgot where, but I know I heard it somewhere. It's either that, or you're a little kid who's utterly stupid.

"Is two weeks considered fast?" he asks me. I nod my head in response to his question. He pulls me closer to him, and a minute later, the song ends.

"I'm sorry, but I need to get back to Shane," I say before walking to Shane.

"You know, we should take the pictures now," Shane suggests.

"Oh, like those ones with the professional photographer, with the guy and the girl and crap?" I ask, trying to see if I was thinking of the right thing.

"Yeah!" he exclaims before pulling me to where the photographer was.

"Wait, I want to take one with Nate, too," I tell him.

He turns around and says, "But Nate's not your date."

"I think Kate left him for Dave," I reply.

"You mean the Dave who thinks we're having sex?" he asks.

"Yeah, that very one. If I got him a dance with Kate, he'll stop the rumors," I triumphantly say.

"Hey, that's awesome! Nobody will think you're a slut anymore," he says with wide eyes.

"Who said that it'll completely stop? He's just gonna try, but it's worth a shot," I remind him. Rumors don't stop that easily.

After twenty minutes, I had taken both pictures with Shane and Nate, and Kate took one with Dave. Nicole and Jason were getting theirs done while me and the two guys waited.

"You know, we need to get home early since we're hosting the after party," Jason says to the group.

"Being the host people suck," I complain.

"Welcome to my world!" Nate yells before throwing his arms up, then laughing.

**XoLAGOHxO**

Nicole and I had to change into our after-party clothes. Remember the clothes from Forever 21 that I bought? Yeah, skinny jeans. I don't think I'm ever wearing these things again. They're so uncomfortable! Nicole's blue jeans looked so much comfier, and I liked her striped sweater better than my plain one. She had on a dark tank top under the sweater. My peace sign totally stood out.

"I still don't get the whole point of an after party outfit," she huffs as she puts on her brown belt.

"Shane told me that I needed to look good since I'm his date. I'm pretty sure Jason didn't tell you that," I say, telling her that her situation wasn't really that bad.

"No, he just said that it was a night of dress-up, to look really good. He's so sweet," she replies. Jason and Nate make Shane seem like a huge jerk.

"Well, we should go down and try patrolling the party," I say before going downstairs.

Tonight's party is way more wild than the other ones since the people were already hyped up from the dance. It's almost as if the dance was just a warm up for them. That thought kind of scares me. The girls were dancing much more wildly than they did earlier. Maybe it's because there's no adults around to hold them back.

I see Shane and call him over. When he gets to me, he asks, "So, you still in the dancing mood?"

I was just about to answer him when we hear a large commotion coming from the doorway. I quickly walk over to it. I hear a glass bottle smash, and all color drains from my face when I see Angela and the other girls. She was holding a broken beer bottle, and I see Erica slip out a gun. She's about to shoot before Shane tackles her and grabs it.

Nate's trying to grab Angela's weapon, too. People are freaking out, their drunken states fueling their energy. I run over to the entertainment system and shut down the music. People are still freaking out. I have to call order to this before somebody gets seriously injured.

"OKAY, SHUT UP PEOPLE!" I yell very loudly. The entire room goes silent and all eyes are on me.

"Go home or we'll call the cops," Shane threatens the girls.

"If you call the cops, your parents are going to get fined if there's drunk kids," Cassie says.

"What, you don't think they can afford it? Get out, or we're going to call the cops," Shane repeats.

"Wait, why aren't you guys in jail?" Nate asks them.

"Well, we got out of the DETENTION CENTER and we don't have any consequences," Erica explains. You could tell that she was lying.

"No, you guys should at least be on probation," he reasons.

All four girls get horrified expressions. That's when Nate knew that they were on probation, and if the cops found out that they had guns and weapons, they'd face serious consequences.

"Okay, let's put it this way," Jason starts. "We can afford the fines from the cops, but if you guys get discovered for trying to kill anyone, or even hurting them, we all know that you're going to be spending serious time in jail." He pulls out his phone for dramatic effect. "It's just a couple buttons away," he taunts.

"Wait, so is this party over?" someone from the crowd asks. The brothers contemplate it for a moment before answering, "Sorry, guys. Unless we want a run-in with the law, this thing's gotta end."

We hear jeers from the crowd, but they comply when being asked to getting out. The law obviously threatened them. They didn't want to get involved with the girls who burned down my locker, and nineteen others as well. Most people were saying things like "Nice party" or "See you guys here next week." I'm not sure if there's going to be another one this week. After the crowd left, we all revert our attention back to Morgan, Angela, Cassie and Erica.

"So," Nicole speaks for the first time. "You guys leaving or what?"

"We came here for a specific reason," Angela says. She points to me and continues, "You stole my boyfriend, my Shaney-boo, my Pooh-Bear, and you're sleeping with him, too."

The next thing really surprises me. Shane walks up to her and slaps her across the cheek, hard. "I never liked you. I never felt anything for you. I was just using you," he angrily says.

Angela looks up to him, tears spilling from her eyes. Even though she did all of that stuff to me, I still can't help but sympathize for her. "But-" she starts but gets cut off.

"Look, Jenny didn't do anything to you guys, okay? I never liked you, Angela. How much do I have to say it? Get out before something else happens," he orders them.

"Yes, she did! She ruined everything between us! Shane, I love you. I fucking love you so much!" she cries. She was hysterically sobbing right now. "She ruined me. She got me expelled, my record with the state is scarred because of her. It's all her fault!"

"Leave," Shane grits out. "Get out." Angela's still standing there looking dumbfounded.

"But Shane," she begs.

"GET OUT!" he screams at her.

Morgan grabs her arm and drags her out of their, Cassie and Erica following them. Shane still looks really mad. I can't believe that he hit a girl, even if it was Angela. Guys aren't supposed to do that. To break the tension, I fall back on the couch and say, "Wow, what a night."

"Yeah, sure was," everyone but Shane agrees with me. Instead, he runs up to his room and slams his door. First I had to deal with Nate. Now I have to deal with Shane, too? High school is really tiring me out.

Is it common for the Grey brothers be violent? First Nate with his anger issues and the wall, now Shane's slapping girls. Is Jason the only sane one?

**Sorry for the really crappy chapter!! Like I said, high school's kinda torture so far, but it's not that bad. Just a lot of stress, and me missing my bus a lot. Seriously, it always comes early! I'm making it a point to get there at least five minutes early tomorrow. I'll try updating in one-two days or ASAP! I hope this chapter was long enough to make up for the lost days.**

**Oh yeah, 27 reviews for the last chapter! You guys are absolutely amazing. Can't wait to see how much this chapter will get.. I worked my ass off for it!!**


	23. Confessions

**A/N - Okay, I have survived the first week of being a freshman. Guess what? Thanks to my mom, I'm missing the first game of the football season, which is tonight, and there's even a tailgating party with food. Ugh. You know, I wouldn't wanna go anyways. Not my thing. Maybe next year? I'm so sorry Caroline! I forgot to put you in the dance, OMG!! Tell me if you want me to edit that chapter, cuz I will. Or if you don't say anything at all..**

"Okay, what do we do with Shane?" Nate asks, breaking the five minute silence.

"I've never seen him so pissed," Jason says.

"Well, that really scared me," Nicole admits. I was still lying there, just listening, not talking. My mind was numb right now.

"Jenny, what do you think about all of this?" Jason asks me.

"Seriously, guns? And those broken beer bottles. I feel like reading The Outsiders now," is all I can say.

"Hmm, good book," Nicole agrees with me.

"Shouldn't somebody check on Shane?" Nate asks.

"Yeah! And that somebody should be.." Jason starts as he drums on his leg, "JENNY!"

"Why me? Can't I just rest here in peace?" I start complaining.

"Dude, you haven't died yet," Nicole points out.

"I meant sleeping! You know, people have attempted to kill me too may times this week," I say before grabbing a couch pillow and putting it over my face.

I felt the pillow coming out of my grasp and see that Nate was the one who did it. He grabs my hand and drags me to the stairs.

"Go and talk to Shane," he says before trying to nudge me up the first step.

"Ugh, I don't wanna! He's obviously in an uber pissed mood right now," I try persuading him to let me go.

"Which is why you would seriously need to talk to him," he reasons.

"Okay, how about I go and murder Angela?" I suggest.

"Even though we all support the idea, you need to keep up your goody two-shoes image," he says.

"What goody two-shoes image are you talking about? I'm one of the biggest 'sluts' now!" I sarcastically bite.

"Girl, just go up there," Nicole says to me in a serious voice.

"Yeah, whatever. Fine," I reply before walking up the winding staircase.

"Oh, you listen to her and not me!" Nate exclaims. I can hear Jason laughing.

"Friends are forever, boys are whatever," I say in my fake girly voice before running the rest of the way up.

Instead of going into Shane's room right away, I go to Nate's room and change into some of his comfy clothes. Have I mentioned that I don't like skinny jeans? The flared ones suit me much more. I'm now wearing a Green Oak football t-shirt and some of Nate's workout shorts. I still don't see the point of talking to Shane. Aren't you supposed to let people cool down before trying to make them feel better?

The rules for when a person gets extremely pissed/angry is simple. First, you've gotta let them talk to themselves and go crazy for about a day. When they seem emotionally stable enough, you start talking about it, what went wrong, you know, become a friendlier shrink. Then they break down in tears or more anger, and within the next day or so, they'll be fine. It's a pretty repetitive system. Well, I think so.

"Stupid sluts and their guns," I mutter to myself once I arrive at Shane's door. What would you say to a guy that just physically abused a girl? Okay, Angela deserved it, but the tension when it happened. I've come to relate with the term "you could cut it with a knife." I'm about to knock when I hear something come from the other side.

I quietly press my ear to his door to try to hear the sounds better. Wait, is that a guitar? I can't exactly hear the tune, but I can also tell that he's singing something. If it was possible, I press myself closer into his door, hoping to catch some more of the guitar and his voice. Wait, why did it stop all of sudden? The door leaves my hands as I fall forward onto the floor.

"Shit!" I yell after I fall down. Is pain obsessed with me? I finally look up to see a very angry Shane Grey.

"Great, now you're spying on me," he states.

"Whoa, hold up. I'm not spying, I was forced to come," I say.

"Well, can you leave then?" he asks, his hand pointing towards the open door.

"Can't we just talk about tonight?" I ask him, skipping the first step for when dealing with a very pissed off person.

"What's there to talk about?" he asks, looking anywhere but me. I'm still sitting here on the ground. A hand would kind of help!

"You know, there's some things to discuss after some vengeful girls crash your party," I point out.

"Those girls only want revenge on you, not me," he arrogantly says.

"Okay, do you want me to list the things they've tried doing? They've tried pouring blue paint on me, they've put a snake in my locker, they've burned down that locker, they paid guys to drop me twenty-five feet, and they just came here with weapons. I think it's obvious who their target was," I point out.

"What are you trying to say?" he asks.

"My wishes for a normal life are gone. Flown out the window. Sometimes, I don't think it's worth our friendship," I admit.

"Jenny, do you know why I did that to Angela?" he asks me.

"No, I don't. She's a bitch, but that slap was harsh," I say.

He walks over to his bed and sits down on it. I follow him and do the same thing.

"It all started in eighth grade," he starts. "Back then, I was still the football star, captain of our Unlimited team. I was just thirteen, but I'd easily like girls, and I'd ask them out. It was also the grade that I lost my virginity to Angela.

"We kind of went out secretly until I was a sophomore. At some point, I actually felt like I really truly liked her. Then one night, after a couple weeks of acting strange, Jason broke down and confessed something. Angela had drugged up both of them with LSD and they had sex. She also took his virginity.

"I know it wasn't Jason's fault, it was Angela's. She was the one that drugged them up. I guess the heartbreak from her cheating on me caused me into my endless spiral of sleeping with girls. After awhile, she became one of the girls I'd frequently sleep with, but I didn't care. Every girl felt the same. Every girl felt empty, emotionally.

"And you know, I'm so jealous of you. Your mom actually cooks for you and everything, and your parents are always home. My parents have had their careers before me or my brothers were born. Of course, after a couple years of my mom taking a break, she got back to work. Dad's never home either. He goes around the country now since he's a music producer.

"It might look cool being rich and popular, but it really isn't. All I want is a good family, with the parents home. I just want to sit down every week and have dinner with my parents. I'd kill to hear the words, 'So, how was school today?' come from either of them. I hate what I've made myself become, what a manwhore I've become.

"She ruined my life, took all innocence Jason and I had left. She had the audacity to say those three words to me, the words that hurt me the most. She made me who I am today, and I'm not proud of it. And she goes around being a hypocrite, when she deserves everything she's getting. She destroyed me."

He finishes his speech and starts softly crying. All of that information is overwhelming, and it explains why he's the way he is today. There's nothing to do but sit here and listen to him, and to do my best to make him feel better. For the next hour, my arm is around Shane's shoulder, and he's crying into mine.

**XoLAGOHxO**

Jason had to drive me home tonight since Shane was obviously incapable of doing it. You should've seen Nicole's face when I walked down the stairs. Obviously, I changed my clothes, but the shirt was soaked on my shoulder, and I looked like a mess. I guess I was up there for quite some time.

"_Nicole, I didn't have sex with him," I tell her._

"_But.. Why do you look like that?" she asks._

"_Let's just go home, I'll tell you tomorrow," I say, dragging Jason to his car._

I look like a mess right now because inside, I am one. Nate was jealous of Shane, and Shane's had such a rough life. Angela's caused him so much pain that it was only time that she got what she deserved. I'm not sure if I can tell Nicole that Jason lost his virginity to that whore. But maybe he already told her, or maybe not. I just hope that it all works out in the end.

Once Nicole gives Jason a good-bye kiss and walks into her house, Jason starts the short drive to mine.

"Jenny, what happened?" he asks. I can see his concerned face thanks to the mirror.

"It's private," I reply before thanking him for the ride and walking inside my house.

I'm extremely early coming home, and I tell my mom that I'm just tired from tonight. For once, I get an early sleep. The thing is, that night, my dreams were filled with nightmares. Nightmares that made me wake up at three in the morning crying my eyes out. They all had the same plot to them. They all had me committing suicide.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I'm very shaken for school this morning. The entire weekend, I was pretty much on lockdown. I needed time alone, to be by myself. I think those dreams were a warning of something. I've never had so many dreams in one night of me taking my own life. I had seen Shane in such a vulnerable state, but we're friends. Friends always help one another. When they're confessing to you something, you don't judge, you just listen.

I made it a point today of getting up extra early to walk to school. I hope that the walk will calm my nerves. It takes me about forty five minutes to walk to Green Oak HS. Even though I walked here, I'm still early. I'm not sure if I can handle talking to Shane this morning. I need a little more time. What if he drove to my house and waited or something? No, now I feel really guilty!

I'm sitting in the front right now since the school doesn't let kids in for another five minutes. That's when I see Jason's car speeding up to me before screeching to a halt. Jason runs out the door, and I can see Nicole in the car, too. His shirt has some blood on it. Oh man, this can't be good. This really cannot be good.

"Jenny, we found Shane in his room this morning covered in blood!" Jason screams, pain evident in his voice.

"What? No, what happened?!" I ask him, terrified of what the answer may be. I quickly jump into the car.

"He's at the hospital right now, and Nate's with him," Jason says before jumping into the driver's seat. Nicole's eyes were red and puffy. It wasn't like her to cry, she never cries. I mean, rarely.

"What's wrong?" I ask Jason, feeling my own tears pouring down. He starts heading for the hospital.

"I.. he needs to tell you," is all he answers. I fall back in my seat, worry overcoming my senses.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I'm sitting in the waiting room with Jason, Nate and Nicole. None of them are telling me what's up with Shane, or why he was in the hospital. A doctor comes out and tells us that we can go visit him. They urge me to go first, and I hesitantly do. I get to his room, and I feel like I'm about to cry again when I see him laying there, looking so weak. His wrists were bandaged up, and he had an IV needle in his arm.

I grab a stool and sit down next to him. I'm so scared to touch him. He turns to me and tries to touch my hand, but it doesn't seem like he has enough energy to do so. I put my hand lightly over his, scared that I'd be hurting him. I don't want to hurt him, I never ever want to do that.

"Hey," he says with a forced smile.

"Hey," I reply back, trying my best to get rid of the tears forming behind my eyes.

"I'm sorry," he apologizes, looking at my eyes.

"Shane, don't be sorry. Please, just don't," I beg him. It hurt me so much to see him like this.

"I'm sorry.. For trying to leave you," he whispers to me.

"Shane, how were you leaving me?" I'm really worried now.

"I tried to commit suicide," he says, looking away from me. "I drank myself into oblivion last night, then tried to slash my wrists."

I couldn't take it anymore, I start crying. He must be really hurt if he was willing to leave everyone. Leave this earth. He looks back at me, and starts talking again in that weak voice.

"Please, Jenny, don't cry for me."

"No, I have to make you accept your life. I have to be a true friend and help you through this," I sob. The tears were falling faster.

"It's not your fault," he tries reassuring me. "I was just so sick of my life. I.. I couldn't take it anymore."

"I'll make your life better, I promise. I'll do anything."

"Just be there for me," is all he says.

"I promise to be there for you, Shane," I promise.

"I love you," he whispers before getting knocked out by the pain killers.

'I love you.' I'm not sure if he meant sisterly love, or something more.

"I love you, too," I say to him, knowing that he couldn't hear it.

I just stayed there, sitting next to him. Just being there. I only left when the doctors said that I had to leave. I don't know how long I was there, but I knew one thing for sure;

It's him. I'm pretty sure that he's _the one. _And I won't regret making that decision, regardless of Nate, because Shane needed me more.

**A/N - Okay, the Nate lovers, I sincerely apologize!! I nearly cried during the two hours that I spent writing this. I kept writing it over and over and over.. Suicide's a very sensitive subject to me. I know I didn't portray the plans that well, but it's the best that I can do right now. **


	24. It's Not Unrequited

**A/N - Got home early from work.. Mom's busy. That means another chapter! Very soon, cuz I got so many reviews so fast. And hits. I finally reached 9,000 hits! You know what I hate? People who take one glance at the way I write or something, then hit the back button and try finding another story. And that would count as a hit. Oh well, that's still a whole heck of a lot to me! **

**P.S. This story is far from over. FAR FROM IT. Or well, it should be. My mom's nagging at me telling me to end it ASAP, but I'm not gonna listen to that woman. NOPE.**

The school's not fair. The school's not fucking fair. I walk into the front office, two hours late to school, eyes puffy and red and huge. Then they give me a fucking detention. They told me that it would be tomorrow, but I asked them to just make it today to get it over with. Seeing my very angry face, they agreed.

Nate ended up getting detention, too. And here we were, stuck in the detention room of Green Oak High. It's not really that big since hardly anybody gets detention. Did the administrators care when we told them that our brother and friend just tried to commit suicide? Nope. What kind of a school is this?!

The gossip that the kids were spreading made me lock myself in the bathrooms so many times today, just to cry. To cry for Shane. I heard so many things in the hallways.

"_I heard he did it cuz Angela crashed his party."_

"_No, he did it cuz Angela wouldn't take him back."_

"_No, he tried doing that shit because Jenny forced him to."_

"_Wait, why would Jenny do that?"_

"_Because she hates them. I was in a lot of her classes. She's openly expressed her hate for a long time."_

"_No, that's seriously stupid."_

"_I think she tricked him into taking some drug, then she slashed his wrists herself."_

And just as easy as that, the rumor spread that I had a part in his suicide. Why were the kids so stupid? Why couldn't they see that those reasons were idiotic, and who in their right mind would believe such liars? The students at Green Oak. That's the answer.

"Why would they believe such stupid shit?" I ask Nate in detention.

"I don't know Jenny, but none of it was your fault, I know that," he tries reassuring me. I start crying again. I just can't stop crying.

"But I could've tried to prevent it! We were friends. We were becoming such good friends," my last word gets broken before I start sobbing.

I didn't have to worry about Dave stopping the slut rumors about me anymore. There are new rumors out and about, and they are so much more worse. I can't believe it. And I can't believe that I cry throughout the forty-five minute detention. All I did was cry. And after detention, Jason drove us to the hospital again to see Shane.

"God, I'm crying so much today," I say to Nate as we walk to Shane's room.

"You have plenty of reasons to cry," he says, putting a hand on my shoulder. It's weird how he didn't seem bothered by this at all.

"Yeah, I know, but I've never cried this much before. Ever," I put emphasis on the last word.

When we arrive at Shane's room, he's still asleep. If possible, his face is even paler. I walk up to him and sit back down in that stool. Why couldn't I make him at least a little bit happier? Reliving our conversation this morning in my head, my tears start falling again. He said that he loved me. What kind of love was he talking about? And I said it back. But nobody was there to hear.

"Jenny, please, don't cry," Nate says when he gets near me.

"But look at him, Nate. Something else must've happened over the weekend to make him do this," I try reasoning through my sobs.

"Something did, but he should be the one that tells you," he replies.

"What happened? I can't wait for him to wake up and tell me. What happened?" I keep asking Nate.

"Jenny, I really can't tell you." He's obviously avoiding the question. I don't care if he can't tell me. I hear something and turn my attention back to Shane. He's starting to wake up.

"You can ask him about it now," Nate tells me before leaving me alone with Shane.

"Ask me what?" Shane drowsily asks.

"You should be fully awake first," I say before forcing a small smile.

"I'm awake now, so ask me the question."

"Shane, did something happen this weekend? Like, something.. Really bad?" I finally ask the question. His color is starting to return.

"It's nothing big," he tries reassuring me.

"If it's nothing big, it wouldn't have caused you to have done what you did," I push.

"I.. had a fight with Nate," he reluctantly admits.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I ask.

"It started when Nate asked me about the whole Kate issue. He asked me if I knew anything about it, and I told him the truth. That you told me a couple days in advance. Then he got really mad that you told me that, but I didn't understand why he'd get mad over that. We started fighting about our trust issues and everything, about our strained relationship. Then he let something slip.

"He accidentally admitted what happened between you guys last week. That.. That fucking _kiss._" He says the last word with huge disgust.

"It's all my fault," I sob, looking at anything but Shane. The rumors were kind of right, it's because of me that Shane tried to kill himself. But why would he kill himself over such a worthless person? All because of that stupid kiss.

"I couldn't believe that he did that. He knew since the first week of school how I felt. He knew all along, but he still did that," Shane says before he himself starts crying.

"Shane, you shouldn't have attempted to kill yourself over something as stupid as me," I tell him.

"You're not something stupid," he tries reassuring me before crying harder.

"Please, don't hurt yourself anymore," I beg.

"What hurts the most is unrequited love," he mutters.

"The love isn't unrequited," I say before putting my hand on his cheek. His face is tear-stained.

I hear somebody running down the hallway and immediately turn around. It happened just when I said that the love wasn't unrequited.

"Nate," Shane says. "It was Nate."

"What do I-" I start before getting cut off.

"Go and chase him," Shane tells me. I hesitate, not knowing what to do. "Go!" he yells, and I run out of his room and down the hall, in search of Nate.

Wait, where would Nate be? Shane just totally forced me to chase after Nate. But why would he? He just literally admitted that the reason why he tried to commit suicide was because of unrequited love. The feeling of loving somebody but not getting any in return. I heard that it's one of the worst feelings.

I run out towards the front entrance, and I'm outside now. All I can do now is walk around and hope to find him. After five minutes, I see him hidden behind a tree. What shocks me is that he's screaming curse words and he's punching the trunk. I can see the bark flying off of it. I immediately run up to him and grab his hands, trying to stop him from bloodying them up even more.

"Don't fucking touch me, you bitch!" he yells before breaking free from my grip. The next thing that I feel is a sharp pain across my left cheek as I get pushed to the ground. I can hear him heavily panting as I try to collect myself together. I taste something metallic in my mouth, and I know that it's my blood. I turn my head to look up at Nate. He has a horrified look on his face.

"Oh my God, Jenny, I'm so sorry!" he apologizes, kneeling down next to me. "Don't move, I'll help you get up."

I let him pull me up to my feet, resulting in my hands being covered in blood. My tears have completely stopped by now. Why wasn't I yelling at him? Why wasn't I hurting him, too? How come I'm not pushing him away when he hugs me?

"I'm so sorry," he keeps apologizing. His hug is so tight that my face is buried in his chest, and it's getting a bit hard to breathe.

"Why?" is all I manage to utter out. I can't talk so well. Just moving my jaw hurts like hell. I can feel more blood gushing from a cut in there.

"I don't know what came over me," he says, before pulling me closer, if that was even possible. I feel a dampness on my head, and when I look up, I see that Nate's crying now. Everybody's been crying too much today.

"It's okay," I assure him through my pain.

"No, it's not! You're bleeding. You're hurt because of me," he cries out. He pushes me away before grabbing my face.

"I've hurt you so much. I've hurt Shane so much. All I ever do is cause people pain." He lets go of me before turning away.

"No, you make me happy!" I scream at him to get it through his head. I didn't like where this was going, and that screaming made my mouth come on fire as I try to swallow the blood.

"How could I ever possibly make anybody happy?" he whispers to himself, still facing away from me.

"Nate, we went from ignoring each other to becoming the best of friends. How could I not be happy?" I spit out the blood since I can't manage to swallow anymore.

"But that's the point. We're friends. Just friends," he mumbles, still not willing to face me.

"I don't know what you guys want anymore!" I scream in frustration. I spit out more blood.

"We want you! And we'll do whatever it takes for it," he threatens before running away from me.

That's the second time he's run away. I don't know if I can take this anymore. I don't know if I can take on all of this at once. The suicide attempt, the punch, everything. I can't go back in the hospital. A nurse or doctor's definitely going to notice and try to treat me, and that's the last thing that I want right now.

"I'm sorry Nate," I whisper in the direction he went off. "I'm sorry Shane," I say in the hospital's direction. "I'm sorry everyone."

And with that, I take the hour long walk home.

**A/N - Do the Nate fans hate me now? I think that the last scene is really important to the story, and I can guarantee you that Nate's never hitting Jenny again. But how would you feel if some girl that you really liked pretty much confessed her feelings to your BROTHER. And you still want to punch something, and you weren't thinking. So it was an accident out of pure anger. But that just shows you guys how much both guys feel for her.**

**And it just adds more suspense to the ending of this story. I'm sure that won't come for quite some time, but when it does, it'll be like the ending of a drama for me. Tears and joy. What do you guys think?**

**Oh, and like, I know it's early, but.. SEQUEL OR NO SEQUEL?!**


	25. In the Closet

"Jenny, where were you?!" my mom screeches at me when I enter my house. My mouth had stopped bleeding, but I could still feel my cheek swelling up. I'm not sure if I had a black-eye or not.

She runs over to me when she sees my literally fucked up face. It still hurts whenever I try to talk. "Oh my God, Jenny, do you need to go to the hospital? What happened?!" she asks.

"Mom, I just ran into something. I was out, I'm sorry," I totally lie to her. Why have I been lying so much lately?

"I knew that you were clumsy, but I didn't literally mean it that you'd kill yourself one day," she jokes before letting me go up to my room to clean myself up. I wasn't the one that tried to kill myself. It was Shane.

I walk into the bathroom upstairs and wash my face, being careful to not put too much pressure on my left side. But then I look up into the mirror, and I'm horrified at what was staring back at me. My left cheek had a huge bruise on it, and my left eye was swollen, but it wasn't so bad. My mouth had bloodstains on it. I open it to see where the cut was, and I see that it was both my tongue and the inside of my cheek. I still can't believe that it was Nate that did this to me.

**XoLAGOHxO**

After skipping dinner last night, I had to wake up early to cook myself a big breakfast. Actually, the breakfast was mainly liquids since I couldn't chew without wanting to scream in pain. I don't remember the last time that I drank that much V8. Obviously, Shane wasn't going to pick me up today, so I'm guessing that I have to ride the bus.

I also tried to cover up the bruise this morning with some concealer that my mom had. I didn't own any make-up, and the concealer didn't really do much since my mom's complexion is so much lighter than mine's because she's half French.

I walk out of my house and nearly drop my back pack when I see Jason's Ferrari parked in my driveway. I cautiously walk up and see Nicole and Jason in the front seats, Nate sitting in the back. Jason rolls down his window before yelling, "Jenny, what the fuck happened to your face?!"

I see Nicole jab him in his side before she says, "Don't be rude!" But her expression goes from annoyed to horrified when she takes a look at me. "Jenny, what happened?!"

I take a look at Nate and see him staring in the opposite direction, his fists clenched extremely tight even though they were bandaged up. Maybe it's just me, but I swear I could've seen some pink seeping through. My mouth hurts and I don't feel like talking, so I use hand motions to tell Nicole that I ran into a door.

"Woman, you don't fuck up your face like that by running into a door," she says. Jason looks really confused. I guess he doesn't understand Jenny/Nicole sign language. I reply by shrugging my shoulders.

"So, you gonna get in?" she asks. I shake my head and use my hand motions again to tell her that I'll be riding on the bus.

"Well, if you're gonna go on the bus, I'll go with you," she tells me before getting out of Jason's car. "See you at school, babe," she says to him. He waves to the both of us before heading towards the school.

"Jenny, what happened?" she repeats her question when we start walking to the stop.

"Like I said, I ran into a door," I repeat. Why are we repeating our previous conversation?

"I know when you're lying, now spit out the truth."

"Please, can we just not talk about this right now?" I beg her.

"Did anyone hit you?" she asks.

"Why would you think that?" I become defensive.

"Did. Anyone. Hit. You?" she says in a more serious tone.

"No, of course not," I lie to her. How many lies have I told in the past week?

"I'm not sure what you think, but that bruise looks like the result of a really wicked punch."

"Too bad it isn't," I say before attempting one of my sarcastic smiles. Ouch, all that did was make my face hurt more. Great, so I can't even have a good smile without being in pain. The gossip on the bus is horrible. It's even worse than yesterday.

"Some chick probably slapped her for attempting to kill Shane."

"No, it looks more like a punch, maybe some guy."

"What guy would be obsessed with Shane Grey?"

"The football fanatics and the fags."

I see Nicole stand up to the crowd in the back. "Shut the fuck up! You guys don't know anything! What happened to Shane is none of your fucking business, so leave her out of this!" she yells.

"Well then, why would he do it, huh? He's the most popular guy in school, he's a god to all the girls. There's no other reason why he'd do it unless somebody did it for him," I hear a guy call from the back.

"The reason is his shit, not yours, so back off!" she continues yelling to whoever it was that was talking.

"She's the only one that he's been hanging out with lately," another guy says.

Nicole sits down next to me and shakes my shoulders. "Stand up for yourself!" she angrily whispers.

I can't hold back the tears anymore. They were right, they were so right. He did it all because of me. Maybe I wasn't the complete reason, but it was me that pushed him over the edge. "Nicole, you have no idea how right they are," I choke through my sobs.

"What are you talking about?" she asks, worry etched in her tone.

"I can't tell you right now, right here."

"Tell me when you're ready, okay?" she asks before hugging me.

"Everything just sucks right now," I mumble.

"It'll only be temporary," she promises. Nicole, I really hope you're right about that.

And after getting off the bus, my biggest problem is facing Nate in homeroom. I can't face him after what he did to me. Sure, he hugged me afterwards, but the punch hadn't fully registered in my mind. But as I'm walking to my locker and avoiding the stares and gossip, every glance on a reflective object brings me a flashback of that dreadful moment.

"Ahh!" I scream as someone pulls me into a supply closet. I feel a hand cover my mouth.

"Make a sound and you'll regret it," I hear a deep voice tell me. It's so dark in this supply closet, I can't see who he is.

I hear the person use his other hand to try and find the light switch. Imagine my shock when I see that it's Jason.

"Why'd you just pull me into a supply closet?" I ask him.

"It's for your own safety. I heard that Brian and Paul are planning revenge on you, and they're gonna do something today," he whispers.

"So, you pulled me into a closet?" I continue asking.

"I heard it had something to do with guns," he says with suspense in his voice.

"Well, you know the kids here, they gossip about anything and everything," I say, waving my hand as in to indicate that it's no big deal.

"You're obviously hurt enough. I don't know if I can handle you getting hurt again."

"Jason, don't worry about me, I'll be fine. I mean, I can't just hide out in a closet all day!" I exclaim.

"Shh! You don't want anybody hearing you. You're not fine, okay? You were obviously hit yesterday because that's one hell of a bruise, and the person who hurts my girlfriend's best friend will be sorry," he threatens.

"Like I said to Nicole, I just ran into a door," I lie. If I were to bang my head each time I've lied this past week, I'd lose so many brain cells that I'd suffer premature Alzheimer's. Well, not literally. That's no joking matter.

"I'm not stupid. I can sense when somebody's been abused. Was it your mom?" he asks. No, my mom would never do that!

"No, of course not, she doesn't do anything like that!" I defend her.

"Who was it then?" he keeps pushing for the answer. No, I won't give it to him. I refuse to. I hear the bell ring, signaling that we're both late to homeroom.

"I'm not lying! I really did run into a door!" I'm repeating this so much that I myself am starting to believe it. But maybe that's for the best. I'd do anything to erase that horrid memory.

"Please, just tell me the truth," he starts begging.

"That is the truth," I keep saying. There's an awkward silence that lasts for about thirty seconds before he starts speaking.

"It was Nate, wasn't it?" he assumes.

"No, Nate would never do something like that!" I get defensive.

"It was him. I can't believe it," he seethes. Jason seems like he's getting angry, too.

"Why would you think that it's him?" I ask, very curious now.

"He's always had anger issues. Ever since he was a little kid," he says.

"But why would he? He seems so shy and sweet."

"I blame it on neglect from our parents. They were never home," he explains.

"That would explain a lot," I say before I could stop myself.

"So I'm right, it was him," he grits out before his eyes got dark.

"Please, don't tell anybody," I quietly beg him. I don't want people to think of Nate like that.

"I can't promise you that. But what else would that explain?" he asks.

"It would explain why he always gets jealous whenever I mention Shane around him, and the fact that he punched a hole in his wall."

"He did WHAT to his wall?!" he screeches.

"Hey, shush! He got mad when Brian and Paul dropped me, and when we were in his room, he punched a hole in the wall," I explain, reminiscing on that memory.

"That would explain why his hands have been messed up this past week," he ponders.

"Wait, what was the excuse that he made up then?" I ask.

"That he slipped and scratched it on the concrete," he replies.

"Wait, Jason, did you know how he bloodied his hands up yesterday?"

"Well, it can't be from punching you," he reasons.

"Okay, this is dramatic. I was with Shane at the hospital, and he told me that what hurt the most was unrequited love. Then I told him that it wasn't unrequited, and I heard somebody running after that. Shane told me that it was Nate and to go run after him. I find him outside in the wooded area about five minutes later, and he's cursing and punching a tree like there's no tomorrow. I grab his hands so he doesn't mess them anymore, he calls me a bitch, then punches my face in," I uncomfortably admit.

"What was that about unrequited love?" is all that he asks.

"I know it's really fast and all, and that I'm really young, but I'm so confused! I mean, I know it sounds slutty and all, but I really like Nate, but I also really like Shane at the same time. And they both have so many good qualities about them, yet they also have their flaws. Now that I know that they both like me, it's so complicated. And yesterday morning in the hospital, Shane said that he loved me. But then he got knocked out by the pain killers, so he never said if it was a sisterly love, or it was like, IN love."

"And what did Nate do to express his feelings for you?" Jason asks.

"He kissed me last week after that family party," I openly tell somebody for the first time.

"I can't help you. I don't know how to get you out of this."

"I know, nobody can help me," I say before letting out a frustrated groan.

"But what happens when you actually pick someone?" he continues with his questions.

"If I pick Nate, he might, I don't know. Shane said he attempted to do that because of unrequited love. Nate has serious anger manage issues, so I don't know what's going to happen. Why do I have to go through this?" I sob, trying to hold back the building tears.

"Right now, we should be happy that Shane's alive," he says to lighten things up, if that's possible.

"I just want everything to go back to three weeks ago, when I was getting ready for high school knowing that it'd be an uneventful year. Anything to not go through all this. Anything for neither Nate nor Shane to feel that pain," I admit. I miss the good ol' days so much.

"But some good has come out of it," Jason continues being his perky self, forcing a smile.

"What good, huh?" I ask using my sarcastic tone.

"You've made Nicole happy," he says, his smile getting bigger.

"Yeah, I guess I have," I realize before attempting to smile, too. "Ouch!" I say when the smile hurts my cheek.

"Must've been some punch to have hurt your smile," he jokes.

"I can't eat either. There's cuts on my tongue and the inside of my cheek. It's no joking matter!" I yell. He sounds so rude right now.

"I never said that it was. Point is, you can't show your face in this school unless you want to end up where Shane is."

"But I don't want to end up where Shane is," I whine.

"Exactly, which is why you need to stay here," he nonchalantly says.

"I can't stay in here all day!" I complain. Who would want to stay in a supply closet all day just to save some time in the hospital? Wait, I worded that wrong..

"I'll bring you some fruit juice during my lunch period," he tries reasoning.

"You're fucking kidding me. I doubt that Brian and Paul would bring guns to school just because I got them suspended," I protest.

"That, and ruined their chances of college football," he reminds me.

"Geez, thanks for reminding me that," I sarcastically say.

"You know, I'll report them to the principal, saying that I heard they brought weapons," he suggests.

"Then when they get taken away, I can randomly pop up again!" I say, extremely excited now.

"And I could fake a teacher's pass for you!" he continues suggesting.

"Wait, what if the office knows you faked it or something?" I start doubting.

"Maybe we should just explain to them the situation, since it's technically not your fault."

"They gave me and Nate detention yesterday even though Shane had attempted to commit suicide," I counter his previous suggestion.

"We'll give it a try anyways. Another detention won't really hurt," he brushes off like it's nothing.

"I guess my safety's more important than whether or not I get detention," I mumble, defeated.

"Besides, if you get detention, I'll join you!" he squeals.

"Oh, joy. Seriously, I'm very enthusiastic right now."

**XoLAGOHxO**

Oh God, after Jason and I went to the main office and explained everything to the administrators, they actually let us get back to class! Apparently, Brian and Paul will be "discreetly" pulled from their classes so that the students won't get suspicious. Something about getting them when they're in the hallways between periods. As of right now, I was safe about to move the school.

The buzz about my face just grew throughout the day. I hid in the bathroom for lunch. I couldn't eat anything anyways. But now I'm heading to my first class of the day with Nate. Maybe it won't be so bad. Wait, what am I thinking? He just punched me yesterday, accident or not. That isn't something that you get over that easily. I understand that it was blind anger, but it hurts. Mentally and physically.

I sit down in my assigned seat, an empty one between me and Nate. It's like tension was radiating off of Shane's empty seat. I try my best to use my long hair to cover my view from Nate. After role is taken, Mr. Edwards says that he has to announce something.

"Uhm, there'll be a class project this week, too, with the same group as last project's. Look, I know that you're supposed to be independent workers, but I really have nothing planned the first month," he says, making most of the class laugh.

He gives us a worksheet explaining the project. We're supposed to make a 3-D model of a plane with rays going through it. How am I going to do that? Wait, he just said the same partners as the last project! That means that I'm working with Nate. Mr. Edwards, why do you have to be an inexperienced teacher who doesn't know shit about teaching your fucking subject?!

"Oh, you guys can spend the rest of the period discussing brainstorms with your partner. I'll call you up to tell you your grade for the last project," he says before calling up the first group.

I have to get this conversation over with. I need to clear the air with Nate. I just have to before I explode! I immediately go and grab Shane's chair, then pull it up to Nate's desk.

"We really need to talk," I bluntly state.

"There's nothing to talk about," he whispers.

"Yes, there is," I glare him down.

"Do you know what you put me through?" he continues whispering, his eyes going dark.

"I won't know until you tell me," I say, my voice getting lower so other people wouldn't hear.

"You don't know how tortured I am every time I'm around you," he says, his voice getting scarier. "You don't know what it's like to have Shane talking about you everyday, saying how amazing you are. You have no idea what it's like to watch the girl you're falling for fall for someone else. You don't know the pain I feel, knowing that we can never become anything other than **just friends**."

"But I don't just like Shane," I try telling him.

"I saw what happened yesterday. I heard what you said to him," he accuses me.

"Has it ever occurred to you that I like you, too?" I ask.

"Why would you when you could have Shane, the guy who doesn't have anger issues," he states, more than questioning.

"I feel your pain. I don't know who to choose. Remember, Shane did what he did because of that kiss," I remind him.

"I would do the same thing if he kissed you, you know."

"Please, don't say that. I don't want you guys hurting yourself over me. I mean, look at your hands," I say before gently grabbing them. "They're bandaged, and they've been bleeding so much lately. I don't want anyone experiencing any form of pain thanks to me."

"But I caused you pain, too," he says before touching my injured cheek. I wince away from his touch. "See, I can't even touch you without hurting you."

"Nate, Shane and Jenny!" Mr. Edwards calls out. We both get up to see what our grade is. "Congratulations, guys! You got a 110 on it since the house was so big. Amazing job, let's hope this project will be just as good!" he perkily says. Nate and I give him a tight-lipped smile before sitting down.

"Nate, you don't always hurt me," I continue our previous conversation.

"I can't stand it when you get hurt," he shakes his head, his hair covering his eyes. When he looks back at me, they're red.

"I can't stand it when you get hurt, either. I can't stand it when anyone I'm close to gets hurt."

"No, but I physically hurt you. Aren't you worried about me hitting you again?" he asks, his voice getting strained.

"I trust you to not do that anymore," I try my best to comfort him.

"But why would you?" he asks, a tear slipping from an eye.

"To tell you the truth, I don't know," I reply.

"Can you ever forgive me?"

"I forgave you before it was even over," I say, attempting to smile. It's starting to hurt less, so I smile anyways through the pain.

**A/N - Jenny's not the type to really hold grudges. When she really loves someone, regardless of what kind of love, she always manages to easily forgive them. She tries to place herself in their shoes. God, I sound so sappy. **

**My mom's being a bitch, saying that since the library books are overdue, I can't touch the computer tomorrow. God, I even reminded her! But no, it's all my fault. Psh, whatever. I can't reply to mail in Computer class anymore since they blocked fan fiction. I just discovered today! Grr, it's like they're taking away my fun when I have free time in that class. At least I can check my mail, just not reply to private messages and reviews. So, REVIEW AND I WILL READ IT!**


	26. Return of the 'Rents

**A/N - To sum up the past two days or so; I feel so used when it comes to computers! I've gotten over 11,000 hits so far. Well past 300 reviews! It's my one month anniversary with this story!! Oh, and I changed the genre and chapter names. This story still has some humor, but it's really leaning on drama right now, right?? On with the update!**

**One more thing, Crystalbluu, I know you alerted my story, so can you please review?! You probably don't have time or anything, but I love your story on Mibba and like, yeah. I'll flip out if you review, because you're like a FF celebrity to me. But if I could get Devilpup to read my story, or Scarlettblush, I'd probably die xD**

"Jenny Huynh and Jason Grey, please report to the principal's office," I hear Mr. McFall say on the loudspeaker. The painful smile just left my face when I saw that Nate's was giving me a questioning look.

"Probably about what happened in the closet," I say to myself. I'm pretty sure he heard because his hand that was still in mine clenched into a fist. "Hey, anger management," I remind him.

"Whatever. What were you guys doing in a closet together?" he asks.

"I'll tell you later, don't want any rumors to start." I wink at him before getting Mr. Edwards to sign my agenda. I begin the walk to Mr. McFall's office. I was just outside his door when I saw Jason far down the hallway. I run up to him and give him a hug.

"Jenner!" he says. We're on close friends terms now. Isn't that great? Seriously, I'm not being sarcastic. If he went out of his way to pull me into a supply closet just for my safety, he was a true friend.

"Hey Jase! So like, what do you think P MAC wants?" I ask him. Jase is a pretty cute nickname for him. And you know, P MAC for Principal McFall. Much less syllables.

"Uh, 'P MAC'? Well, probably something to do with those guys, cuz it was us that, you know.." he trails off, looking all around to see if anyone was spying on us.

"Wow, you're pretty paranoid," I note when he finally stops looking.

"You're the buzz of the entire school. If people heard that you had to go to Mr. McFall's office with me, don't you think that anyone would spy? They'd probably try saying that we got caught having sex in the bathroom or something," he rambles.

"Which we clearly did not," I clear, in case anyone was actually spying.

"Of course we didn't. I'm with Nicole, and you're with.. Well, that's actually complicated."

"Shouldn't we get to his office now?" I remind Jason. He slaps his forehead before we both head back near the front lobby.

After Jason and I situated in our chairs in Mr. McFall's office did he turn around in his large leather chair. Does he always go for a dramatic effect?

"Ah, I see that you have made it," he says, déjà vu being the first thought on my mind. Why is he always trying to be so disgustingly formal?

"So, what's the dealio?" I ask him, trying to get it over and done with.

"Jenny, what happened to your face?" he asks.

"Doors hate me," I simply state.

"Does he always talk like this?" Jason whispers to me. I roll my eyes and nod my head.

"Okay, both of you know about Brian and Paul since, of course, you guys reported him," Mr. McFall starts. "We've found their weapons in their lockers. I just want to warn you guys to be very careful. There have been too many attempted murders lately," he huffs.

"Can we go now?" I ask impatiently.

"You know what, you guys can have the rest of the day off. I'm pretty sure you're tired," he offers.

"So you're gonna let us leave just like that?" Jason asks.

"It's been enough drama today. You guys should go and rest," Mr. McFall says.

"So, we can go, just like that," I state rather than ask. He nods in response. "Whoo, Jason, let's go visit Shane!" I start jumping up and down.

"Yeah, but we're gonna have to go back for practice," he reminds me.

"Who cares?! Let's go see Shane!" I continue as I skip my way out the front doors. The security guard nods at us, silently stating that it was alright to leave.

I'm standing by Jason's car, impatiently tapping my foot, waiting for him to unlock it so I could get inside. It's felt like forever since I last saw Shane, but it's been less than a day. I'm shocked to find myself thinking; I really miss him.

Hmm, that sounded extremely cheesy. I'd rather be seeing Shane than be in History, even if they were going over the detail for the group project. Then I realize something as we get on the road.

"Jason, we need to go to a Rite-Aid or CVS cuz I've gotta seriously cover up this bruise," I tell him.

"Oh, hey, look! There's one right now!" he says before parking by the Rite-Aid. I rush inside with him and head directly to the cosmetics aisle. After a couple minutes, I pull out something from CoverGirl that should cover most of my bruise. Jason pays for it while I wait by the car. These guys spend way too much money on me. I apply the foundation as Jason drives us to the hospital. Surprisingly, the bruise is hardly even noticeable. Within minutes me and Jason are in the front lobby at the hospital. I walk to the guy behind the information desk.

"Hello sir, would you mind telling me where Shane Grey is currently located?" I politely ask the young man. He looks like he's Jason's age, only a little bit older. His green eyes look up at me before he nods and types in the computer.

"Well, right now, he's in a counseling session with a therapist, but you can wait thirty minutes to see him," he suggests.

"A counseling session?" I question. Jason's standing there next to me, confusion on his face.

"Well, he did try to, well, yeah," the guy rambles.

"Oh, sorry! Yeah, well, I think I'll just sit down and wait," I say, the reason why Shane was even here coming back to me. I nearly forgot.

"He's gotten quite a few visitors today," the guy says, obviously trying to spark up some conversation.

"Oh really, who?" Jason speaks up.

"Well, it was a couple in their late forties, I think. The woman had dark curly hair and the man looks a lot like you!" the guy replies. "Oh, my name's Greg."

"Wait, Greg, did they say who they were?" I ask him.

"Shit, they're our parents," Jason mumbles.

"What, is that bad?" Greg asks.

"You ever heard of Denise Grey? How about Paul Grey?" I ask Greg.

"Oh yeah, the fashion designer and music producer!" he exclaims.

"Yeah, they're my parents, and Shane's, too," Jason says.

"Well, they just left," Greg informs us.

"We've gotta get going," Jason says to him before grabbing my arm and dragging me out of the hospital.

"Let me guess, we're going to your house," I say after Jason starts driving.

"It's not a good thing," he states, checking his mirrors before switching lanes.

"Yeah, I wouldn't think that it'd be, either."

"They've finally come home after two months only because of what Shane did," he grits out.

"How do you guys live alone then?" I ask.

"Hidden pantries full of food and tons of cash can help out people," he answers.

"Haha, Morgan had a fridge full of take-out when she was locked in her room during her suspension," I reminisce.

"Was it Chinese?" he smirks.

I laugh at his teasing of me and Nicole's culture. We pull up to his house soon afterwards and I get out with him. I've already met their mom, but I haven't met their dad yet. Actually, I'm still nervous about seeing Denise again. When she first saw me, I was in my formal state, but now I'm just me. The girl with the eco-friendly t-shirts, dark jeans and her good ol' chucks. Did I mention really long hair? I really need to get it cut soon. Before Jason could even put his key into the door, I see a middle aged man hastily open it.

"Jason! Why didn't you call us!?" the man, who of course is Mr. Grey, yells at Jason.

"Why would we?" he rudely replies before dashing inside. The three brothers must really not like their parents.

"Hello Mr. Grey. I'm Jenny, Nate, Shane and Jason's friend," I formally greet. He sticks out his hand for me to shake, which I do. Funny how his grip's pretty tight.

"Oh, I don't really remember seeing you around. Are you new?" he asks me. "Oh, and please, call me Paul."

"Like you stick around long enough to see any of our friends!" I hear Jason shout from inside.

"Oh, don't mind him. He's just being his grumpy old self," Paul shakes off.

I couldn't help but arch an eyebrow. I haven't known Jason that long, but he doesn't seem like the kind that got mad easily. He's always nice to everyone. It's pretty obvious that Paul here wasn't very perceptive of his sons. They make me appreciate my parents so much more.

"Yeah, I guess so," I casually reply before Paul invites me in.

His phone rings as he pulls out one of those new BlackBerries. "Yeah, I'm about to start mixing the track. I know, Flo Rida needs another new track.." he walks upstairs to what I suppose is the master bedroom. Wow, Flo Rida? Jason walks back to the living room eating some ranch Doritos.

"Want some?" he offers. I eat one, confusion still on my face.

"Yeah, our dad works with R&B and Hip-Hop artists," he explains.

"Cool, those are always the hardest to produce," I say.

"Which just means that it takes that much more time," he grumbles.

"Oh, Jenny! It's so good to see you again!" Denise squeals when she comes out of the kitchen. She had an apron on.

"Mrs. Grey, why are you wearing an apron?" I ask her.

"Oh, I'm just putting away the groceries. I'm going to try making dinner tonight," she says before laughing. "It's been so long since I've done that."

"Don't worry, her food is edible," Jason assures me.

"Jason!" she smacks his arm.

"Ouch! Child abuse is illegal, mom," he whines.

"Don't talk about those things like it's a joke! I'm already worried enough about Shane. Did any of you guys see this coming?" she asks on a more serious note. We both shake our heads.

"There was no sign of it," Jason states.

"Yeah, I didn't see any either," I agree with him. The truth was, I did, but I don't think Shane would want his mom to know.

"Oh, the doctors say that he's coming back tonight. His wrists are healing up pretty well. He'll be able to play Football by next week. He'll also be seeing a therapist," Denise rambles before running back to the kitchen to unload the groceries.

**XoLAGOHxO**

It took only ten minutes to convince my mom to let me stay for dinner since Denise INSISTED. Like, that woman is too nice for her own good, and she's such a good persuader. And I'm also working on the Geometry project with Nate while we're waiting for Shane to come home. His parents were picking him up.

"Wow, our principal's whack," Nate says after I tell him about the day I just had. He laughed throughout the whole thing except for when I mentioned the stop at Rite-Aid.

"Yeah, unbelievably strange," I agree with him.

"So, we need a whole lot of foam," he changes the topic back to the project.

"Ugh, too many projects!" I whine, hugging a large pillow.

"What, I don't get a hug?" he refers to the pillow. I hit him with it.

"Nope!" I laugh. "The pillow's soft and FLUFFY!"

"Well, I'm hard, but my hair's fluffy," he tries joking.

"You're 'hard'?" I quote him. That just makes me laugh even more. He's so cute when he blushes.

"Hey, I think Shane's home," I say when I hear the faint sound of a door closing.

I quickly rush down the stairs and look out the large windows. Shane's walk is pretty slow, and his hair's a wavy mess. His dad is still talking on his phone while his mom is helping up the driveway. I see him retract from her touch, which makes me frown. All three boys are so distant from their parents. I immediately open the door when they get close. I'm so glad to see Shane outside of the hospital.

"Hi!" I greet them. Shane immediately perks up when I run out and hug him.

"I missed you," he whispers in my ear.

I hear Paul whisper to his wife, "I thought she was dating Nate."

I'm pretty sure that Shane heard them too, since he says, "No, she's not dating that kid."

"Wait, you knew who I was?" I ask his dad.

"Well, I heard about you from my wife, but I just thought that we should've had a formal introduction," he shrugs before walking inside, still talking on his phone.

"Your parents are so much better than mine," he whines.

"Let's just get through tonight with no problems," I say before walking inside with him.

"Ha, I doubt that," he jokes as he walks in with me.

**A/N - I was rushed! Really rushed! I'll update ASAP, and this was a total filler. TOTAL. God, probably my worst one yet, and I gotta go to bed.. 'night guys!**

**9-10-08 - And I updated it, too. I mentioned the bruise. I totally forgot when I posted it! So now it's in there, and that's why people weren't asking her. Hooray for CoverGirl! Do they really have any product that works that good? I wonder.. xD**


	27. Oh, the Irony

**A/N - EEP! CRYSTALBLUU REVIEWED! Holy fucking GOD. I was in my school's library when I checked the reviews in the morning, and I nearly shrieked when I saw that she reviewed. But then again, people were doing homework, and I had to print out some stuff that was due in a couple periods. Thanks for all the reviews! **

**I would like everyone to remember 9/11. It was a day that changed the nation, but I was too young to understand why all the adults were flipping out that day. But now I know that it was the start of so many things, and the end of many lives. **

I'm helping Denise by cooking some homemade mushroom pizza and assisting her with the spaghetti whenever she'd need the help. All she asked me to do for the spaghetti was chop up some olives. No offense to you olive lovers, but I really don't like them on pizza, spaghetti, or anything.

"Oh, thank you so much for helping me," Denise thanks me for the tenth time that night.

"Really, it's no problem," I assure her as I try flattening out the dough.

You know, my cousin Tracy works in the kitchen at Pizza Hut, and she makes a whole ton of pizza each day. I wonder how she does this stuff! I grab a rolling pin and roll it out a bit, grab it in my hands and try flattening it out by doing that rolling motion like I see that old guy doing at this pizza place and push the edges to try and form the crust.

"Wow Jenny, are you experienced with making pizza?" she asks. I quickly shake my head.

"No, no experience whatsoever. I'm just doing what I've seen pizza makers do," I laugh. Were they even called pizza makers?

"Not bad if I may say so myself," she compliments me as she pours the sauce. Cooking with Denise is pretty fun. She's so nice and warm. It's hard to picture as the kind of mom who'd neglected her kids.

"Really? Thanks so much. My cousin works at a Pizza Hut. Is there anything else that I could help with?" I ask her.

"Could you try grating the cheese?" she says as she stirs the spaghetti. I grab the huge hunk of cheese and chop it up into more manageable pieces. I finished grating all of it within ten minutes. Damn, my hands are hurting now. She sprinkles the cheese on the pizza and spreads the chopped mushrooms on it before popping it in the pre-heated oven.

"So, anything else?" I ask her, looking around the huge kitchen to see if there was any other work to be done.

"Nope, you can go have fun with the boys now," she dismisses me. I smile before running up the steps by the garage and head to Shane's room. I feel bad deserting Nate, and Jason was out getting Nicole to come to this dinner.

"Wow, what happened?" Shane asks when I plop down on his bed beside him.

"I was helping your mom a bit around the kitchen, nothing much really," I say before putting my hands behind my head and laying down. I just noticed that I'm pretty tired.

"You look really exhausted," he points out.

"Well, I'm not that tired really. Tonight's strange. Dinner with the family. Nicole being introduced to your parents, and I'm the girl that your dad thinks is dating Nate," I say before giggling a bit.

"Oh yeah, that **kid**," he repeats one of his quotes from earlier.

"What did you exactly mean by 'kid' since he's already fifteen?" I ask.

"The youngster's a virgin, Jenny. All virgins are considered kids," he says.

"Geez, whores like you make us innocent ones feel bad," I pout, trying to stifle my laughter.

"I am so not a whore!"

"Psh, keep telling yourself that and maybe one person would believe it," I say, putting my hand into the "loser" sign.

"Like I said, I'm not a whore," he protests.

"And exactly how many girls have you slept with, huh?" I question him, purposely sounding arrogant.

"Hmm, those college parties I went to last year got me about fifteen," he says, his eyes drifting off into space.

"Say what?" I ask in my ghetto voice.

"Yeah, those parties were the craziest. I snuck in and a bunch of college chicks were throwing themselves at me. Those were the days," he sighs.

"How'd you go from being suicidal to acting like a manwhore again?" I ask him, seriously amazed. Is he bipolar?

"We need to talk. Seriously talk," he gets serious.

"Yeah, we do. We never finished that conversation we had."

"Uh, how do I start this.. Oh yeah. That kiss. Is Nate a good kisser?" Don't tell me he just asked me that. I thought he was being SERIOUS.

"Uh, I don't know. It was so short, and the circumstances had me focusing on other things," I tilt my head in confusion.

"I bet I'm a better kisser," he says, looking smug.

"I'm pretty sure you are. Whores are supposed to be, right?" Weren't we supposed to be having a serious conversation?

"You know, I'm not proud of being a manwhore."

"You can always change, you know?" I remind him.

"Good point, it's been an entire month since I last got laid," he sighs again.

"Okay.. I don't want to know about that shit, but alrighty then."

"What's it like to be completely innocent?" he asks me.

"Shane, I'm not completely 'innocent' as you say I am. Well, maybe I am, but I'm a girl who's obsessed with South Park and Family Guy. I.. uh.. I read mangas with nude pictures when I was ten. I read the book **Go Ask Alice** when I was eleven.." I stall, trying to think of petty things to say that wouldn't make me seem so sugar coated.

"Yeah, that still means you're innocent. Just because you like those shows, or read that stuff, you haven't done anything like that. It's weird talking to you. I mean, even Nicole's less innocent than you. You mentioned something about a make-out session at the after party from the game. It's like you're untouchable."

"I'm not untouchable," I disagree with him.

"What I'm trying to say is simple. Guys like me are totally fine with fucking other whores, but when it comes to even befriending one of those innocent types, it's hard to deal with."

"I still don't get why it'd be hard to deal with."

"Jenny, you scare me. You really do. I've never been so serious about any girl before, but the fact that you're untouched scares me, okay? I'm afraid to even be near you," he says.

"Please, don't be afraid of that. It's nothing big," I assure him.

"Yes, it is. I sometimes think that Nate would be better for you since he's not a whore."

"No, don't ever think like that!" I angrily yell at him. "That shouldn't affect our feelings for each other. If I'm willing to leave that bit aside, so should you."

"It's not that easy to leave all that behind!" he gets up and screams. "I've destroyed my morals, so I thought that I'd might as well just kill myself. To get rid of all the pain of not being loved, and to forget about you."

Shane wanted to forget about me? I thought that we were close, I thought we had something. Why would he want to forget something like that? "Don't be like that," I beg him.

"Please, don't leave me hanging anymore. Don't leave me guessing who you're going to pick to end up with. Don't give me false hope."

He starts pacing across his room, his mind obviously thinking up something. After about a minute, he finally halts in his tracks and gets a dumbfound expression on his face. He turns to me with a huge grin.

"I just got an awesome idea!" he exclaims. "Okay, how about you go on a date with Nate, then a date with me, and then you get to crush his heart?!"

"Uh, excuse me? This isn't some love game show on VH1 or MTV. This is **reality**," I remind him.

"You have conflicted feelings. Both me and Nate are totally head over heels for you, so you should experience both of us before choosing," he says, still grinning. What is he, bipolar?

"Head over heels?" I ask.

"No, not even. Heels over head!"

"Ooh, I love that song! Still, this isn't some show like Rock of Love, Flavor of Love, I Love New York, the Bachelor, or A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila," I point out. "And besides, those shows end up in tragedy."

"What are you trying to say?" he sounds offended.

"We should just let this take its natural course, okay?" I suggest.

"Can we be friends with benefits then?" he asks. I smack his arm.

"What the fuck?! NO!" I yell.

"Gosh, I was just kidding. Don't you have a sense of humor?"

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Wow, this pizza's really good," Nicole says after taking a bite. She came right when Shane and I had our little argument.

"Yum, and I grated the cheese!" I playfully say.

"Yes, Jenny. You are the greatest cheese grater in the entire universe," Nicole jokes before grabbing another bite. We just had our dinner, and I guess the pizza was extra. Everybody's still a little bit hungry. The spaghetti was awesome, but I still didn't like the olives. I feel her put some cheese on my face.

"Dude, what the heck?! You don't just put melted cheese on my face!" I yell before running to the kitchen to wash my face. I wince when I touch my left cheek. It still hurts, but not as much. Oh wait, I just washed off the make-up! And I left the foundation in Jason's car. Great, what do I do now? Put flour on my face? Wait, no, that's too messy. I see Shane walk in the kitchen and immediately turn myself facing opposite from him. He really doesn't need to see the bruise.

"Hey, is everything okay?" he asks.

"Yeah, it is. Just go back to the guys," I tell him.

"Aren't you gonna come along?" I can hear him walking up to me.

"Nah, I'll just look at.. The appliances!" I say, pretending to look at their electric stove.

"Yeah, nice try. Come on, it's nearly eight. Shouldn't you be heading home?"

"Jason! Can you drive me home?!" I yell from my position. I hear footsteps running towards where I was standing. One look at my face and he goes into his hectic mode.

"Shane, you can go upstairs now, I'll just drive her home," Jason says, dragging me towards the living room, hiding my face.

"Okay guys, what's going on?" Shane asks us.

"Nothing, I'm just gonna head home," I say. With my luck, I trip and fall down flat on my ass on the cold tile floor. I look up to see Shane standing over me, horror evident in his eyes.

"Who did this to you?"

"Shane, you should just let her get home," Jason tries restraining Shane. Shane shrugs him off before leaning down to my level.

"Who hurt you?"

"Nobody did, okay? I just ran into a door," I use my old lie.

"No, it's obvious that somebody punched you. I'm gonna kill them," he threatens.

"It was me," Nate says, appearing out of nowhere. Why would he just admit to it?

"What are you talking about?" Shane asks him.

"You know how I feel about her, and you're still trying to get with her. And out of blind anger, I accidentally hurt her," Nate explains. I've already forgiven him, of course, but hearing all of that again still scares me.

"That's not a fucking accident!" Shane yells. "You don't hit a girl like that and just call it an accident!"

"Well you slapped Angela! And it was on purpose, too," Nate tries arguing. Those were two different situations!

"No, I hate Angela, and after what she put me through all these years, she deserved it. You on the other hand had no right! You say that you really like her, that she's extremely special to you. You don't do that to oyur special girl!" Shane continues raising his voice.

But before Nate could reply, Shane walked up to him and punched him square in the jaw. Nate falls back, blood already dripping from his mouth. I see Shane about to kick him, and I dash in, protecting Nate from the kick. Next thing I know, I feel a sharp pain at the back of my head. And within seconds, I'm having my suicide nightmares all over again.

**A/N - Damn, a cliffy. Review and I'll update sooner!**


	28. Agh, My Brain!

**EDIT! - Okay, Starsnuffers is holding another CR/JB fanfic awards, and the rules are more bendable than Scarlettblush's. One of the categories is best OC, and I'm hoping that you guys will nominate my OC Jenny!! Or Nicole, or Gina, or Angela, but seriously, Nicole or Jenny. Remember, Jenny Huynh, Nicole Zhou.**

**It would be so awesome just to get nominated. You guys have no idea how hard it is to make an OC unless you've done it before yourself. To get the personality down, their thoughts, everything. So please, Jenny's funny, she's weird, she's forgiving, and she's sweet. I think.. but just at least try to nominate her. And Nicole's the kick-ass friend who's dating Jason, who always tells things like it is. I need to establish her personality more. I would be so happy to get nominated! SO HAPPY!! SOO FUCKIN HAPPY!! **

**You have 'til October 1st. Get to it!! **

I wake up to the sounds of beeping machines. I open my eyes, feeling a huge headache coming on. When I look down at myself, I was dressed in one of those hospital nightgowns with an IV in my arm. Why am I in the hospital? Why does my head feel like shit? And why can't I remember anything from last night? I try sitting up despite my huge headache. Okay, I know that Nate punched me, but I don't know why I'm in this place. I think I remember something about the Grey parents getting home.. But my mind's blank from there. I see a middle aged female doctor walk into my room and sit down on the stool beside the bed.

"Okay Jenny, what year is it?" she asks me.

"Uh, it's 2008 unless I've been warped to some different time," I try to humor her. She laughs a bit at this.

"When's your birthday?" she continues asking the strange questions.

"June 27th," I reply.

"Do you remember anything from last night?"

"Not really, most of it is pretty blank," I tell her. She takes out a flashlight from her pocket and shines them on my eyes. After a couple seconds, she puts it away.

"That's good, your pupils are the same size, which means you don't have any brain injury more serious than a concussion," she informs me as she writes some things on her clipboard.

"Wait, so I have a concussion? That'd explain the headache and bit of amnesia, right?" I ask.

"It's nothing really serious. You suffered a kick to the back of the head. You're pretty lucky that you aren't blind right now."

"Funny how the nerves for the eyes are located near the back of the brain. But wait, how'd I get kicked?" I don't remember getting kicked.

"Well, it's a pretty complicated story," she starts, referring to her clipboard. "Let's see, two guys got into a fight, one guy tried to kick the other, you blocked it and ended up getting kicked in the head. Since it's an accident, the boy who kicked you isn't charged."

"Do you know which guys?" I ask her.

"They seem like nice boys. Famous parents. Nate and Shane Grey, I think. Your family came last night, too, but they had to leave since visiting hours were way over," she replies. Wait, so Shane was the one that kicked me? And I tried protecting Nate? But why were Shane and Nate fighting?

"So what time is it?"

"Right now, it's a bit past noon," she says.

"Wow, I was knocked out for a bit, wasn't I?"

"It's good that you're able to talk right now. You should be released within a couple hours," she says before leaving me there.

I get off my bed to see if I can walk, but once I stand in an upright position, I begin to feel nauseous. I pull the IV stand along with me to the connected bathroom before throwing up into the toilet. I gargle before getting back on the bed. She didn't tell me that nausea was a side effect from concussions. Wait, it's noon right now, so that means that it's visiting hours! Why the heck isn't my mom here?!

Just as I was thinking that, I see my mom rush in with a bag and she sets it down on the table next to me. She pulls out plastic containers containing congee. She's always made that for me if I ever got sick. It's a Vietnamese dish that's made of rice and water, sometimes containing veggies that you eat if you have a weak stomach.

"Oh, Jenny, I was so worried when I heard. They told me it was an accident and nothing serious, but I thought that you were gonna suffer brain damage!" she rambles as she hands me some of the congee. It had some of those string mushrooms in it. I love those.

"Mom, I'm fine, really. Just a major headache, some nausea, and the fact that I can't remember squat from last night," I say before taking a bite. Yum, it's so good!

"Oh no, you forgot about last night?! So you did suffer brain damage!" she starts getting paranoid.

"Mom, please, quit yelling. You're just making my headache worse, and it's not brain damage, I'm sure the memories will come flooding back to me," I assure her.

"Why are you cursed with being such a drama magnet?" she asks.

"Uh, I wasn't a drama magnet in middle school. Just high school, which by the way I started less than a month ago."

"This all began when you started hanging out with Nate and Shane!" she finally realizes. God, her constant yelling is giving me a migraine.

"At least my life isn't boring anymore. Besides, I'm still a good girl with awesome grades. My average in Geometry's over 100 percent now," I remind her.

"You've been getting hurt so much these days. I think it's almost funny," she laughs. "I mean, what's the chances of you having a life like this? Don't think that I'm not aware about how popular those boys are. And so many things have happened so far." She didn't even know half of it, but this was her reaction. Imagine what she'd do if she found out about the weapons.

"All the pain and unfortunate happenings are worth the awesome circle of friends that I have right now," I happily sigh. Sure, my cheek still hurt. Sure, my life has been somewhat put in danger a couple times. And sure, I have a concussion. The thing that confuses me is that through all of the events in the past couple weeks, I can't help but feel happy. I'm still alive, my few friends are legit, and I have people that truly care for me.

You guys are probably thinking, "What's she talking about?! Those stupid cheerleaders have resorted to party crashing and arson just to take revenge, and her loved ones have physically hurt her, accident or not!" But whatever, fuck it. If it weren't for the Greys, I'd probably be dreading school everyday, having a boring uneventful life, and just not living. Going through the predictable cycle, but now nothing's predictable. I don't know what's gonna happen tomorrow, or even the next minute.

**XoLAGOHxO**

My mom drives into our driveway when we get home. Looking at the clock in the car, I see that it just turned three. The doctors advised me to not go to school for the rest of the week, but I'm not gonna miss any more assignments. My mom tries helping me walk, but even though I'm dizzy and in pain, I refuse it. I can walk the couple meters to my door, no problem. But when I open it, I get crushed under Gina's hug.

"Jenny, I'm so happy that you're alright!" she squeals.

"I have a headache, and get off of me," I order her, sensing her fakeness.

She was only putting up a show. Yes, I'm still mad at this girl! She's one of the worst sisters, EVER! I stomp into the living room and lie down on the couch. Man, this headache is killing me. But then the headache gets worse when I her the shrill ring of the phone. Gina answers it then gives it to me.

"Hello?" I groggily ask.

"Hey chicka, you alright?" I hear Nicole ask me.

"Besides a concussion, amnesia, a migraine, and the nausea, I'm perfectly chipper!" I sarcastically say.

"If you can be sarcastic, I'm pretty sure you're fine," she replies. "But you wouldn't believe what happened last night! After Shane accidentally kicked you, you got totally knocked out, and their dad drove you to the hospital, everyone piling into the car! Nate and Shane, and even Jason were crying the whole time. I've never seen guys cry so much. I was crying, too. I thought that you had brain damage."

Yeah, my circle of friends care a lot about me, it's pretty obvious. These past weeks have been torture on my body. My knee still had that scab, my bruise was starting to hurt even more! And my brain ain't doing so well either. It feels good to just lay back.

"Dude, I don't have brain damage, just like, I can't remember anything last night," I tell her.

"So, do you actually want me to bring our Biology homework over? The Health current event's due tomorrow."

"Yeah, and can you get Nate to bring over the Geometry, History and English homework? I can deal with missing one Spanish assignment," I ask. "And can you ask Shane to come over?"

"Well, I can call them to come over, but why would you want Shane to come over? I mean, he did injure you pretty bad last night. It was actually serious. Do you know what could've happened?" she rants.

"Besides a concussion, blindness," I reply.

"And you're still totally find seeing him? I know it was an accident, but they started fighting over you, ok? And then you just jumped in to protect Nate, and I heard from Jason that Nate was the one that punched you. Even after all that, you still want to see them?"

"Yup, I still do. They were all accidents, really."

"You must really like them then. Because if Jason did that to me, God, I'm gonna give him a temporary restraining order," she jokes.

"Yeah, I guess I like them that much to forgive them for doing that to me," I realize. "So, call Nate and Shane to come over with the homework, and you come over too."

"Well, Jason's gonna have to drive them since Shane's license is suspended. The township thinks that Shane's gonna try crashing into something or someone to commit suicide. It's only for like, a week though, after counseling's over."

"So, did Shane go to school today?" I ask, getting worried.

"No, he and Nate stayed home, but Jason went," she answers.

"So we have to wait 'til Jason gets home from practice," I say.

"Yeah, but I can come over right now," she suggests.

"Yes please! Come over!! My brain needs some social contact outside of my family," I laugh.

"I'll be there right away," she says before hanging up. Man, I'm not sure if my life sucks, or it should be some soap opera. Maybe both! But that means that I'll be doing homework tonight, even with my messed up brain. I am that much of a nerd, aren't I?

**A/N - Yesterday was official Taylor Swift day at my school. LMFAO. Student counsel gets one person from it every Friday to play songs between periods since we have four minutes to get to class. And the person who got chosen played Taylor Swift songs ALL DAY LONG. My god, it drove me insane, even though I like her. I didn't wanna go to class hearing senior guys singing Teardrops On My Guitar. **

**So this chappie was short, and fillery, but come on, the drama needed to rest a little bit. I'm building up for the next chapter, which I just might post tonight if I get a big reception from this one!! And aww, Jenny totally opened up to how much she liked both guys. She sounds like a whore now!! OMG, does she?! **


	29. Serenading

**A/N - Sorry for the late update! Major busy weekend. Remember to cast your votes for nominees in Starsnuffers' and Pyrolyn-776's Camp Rock awards. Vote for the Underdogs. That means no Devilpup, Scarlettblush, Starsnuffers, or Pyrolyn-776. We all know just how amazingly awesome they are, m'kay?**

**Do me a favor and go read Video Girl by LowBreeze. I love that story, but I haven't had much time to catch up since it's so long. LowBreeze obviously works extremely hard, and she even mentioned in chapter 33 (I was looking at reviews) that other stories on CR with roughly the same amount of chapters has less word count than she does by the thousands. Was she referring to me? Because both our stories came out at roughly the same time, hers before mine by three days, but she obviously works so much harder than I do. **

After nearly two hours, Nicole and I finished our Biology homework. It wasn't that hard, really, but I've discovered that having a concussion, plus dizziness and nausea, will make you work extremely slow. I'm lucky to have an awesome friend who will deal with my shit. All she said was, "You have a concussion, it's totally reasonable." So after she went home, I just lied there for about ten minutes, and then the phone rang.

"Hello?" I groggily answer it. The ringing hurts my head.

"Hey, uh, Jenny, we kind of have a small problem," I hear Jason say on the other end.

"What's the problem?"

"Shane refuses to come see you since Nate's going. He blames the entire accident on Nate." I immediately sit up at this. How could Shane blame the entire thing on Nate? It wasn't his fault at all! I grab my head from the sudden movement.

"I'm in no condition to convince him otherwise. Can Nate come over then?"

"He doesn't want to come over, either. He thinks that you hate him." I could almost sense Jason shrugging on the other end of the line.

"Well, tell him that I don't hate either of them. Why would they even assume that?"

"Oh, maybe it's because one kid punched your face in and the other gave you a concussion."

"That's no reason to really hate someone," I say. Then again, the way he worded it made it seem like they were easily hateable. I know, that's not a word. Sue me.

"Yeah, if any guy did that to me, I'd definitely give them a temporary restraining order."

"Oh my God, that's what Nicole said!" I laugh out loud. "No wonder why you guys are dating. But now I'm alone in the house with Mom and Gina, and I need some social contact. Nicole went back home."

"Sorry, I can't come over. Nicole and I are going out on a date. What was it again? Oh yeah, Olive Garden." My face immediately drops at this. I was just enjoying his company, too. Jason was the only Grey brother who wasn't hurting me in any way. "I'm really sorry."

"I guess I'll just sleep then. You know what, I don't feel like going to school tomorrow or Friday. My brain seriously hurts," I joke. "Can you come over tomorrow then?"

"We'll have to see about that, Jenny. I'll definitely try my best. We have a game on Friday, and Shane's going back to practice tomorrow. Try your best to make it," he says before hanging up. He didn't even say bye. I guess I'll just try falling asleep on the couch.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I immediately open my eyes from my small nap when I hear the doorbell ringing. Gina quickly runs down to open it.

"Eric?!" she enthusiastically asks as she opens the door. Her smile immediately turns into a frown. "Who are you?"

"Oh, I'm Jenny's friend Nate. Can I see her?" he asks her. Gina crosses her arms.

"Sorry, but due to some brothers, she's not physically able to walk, talk or eat," she lies. "Did I mention bathe, yet?"

"Gina! Go back to your room!" I yell at her. Man, that girl can be a serious bitch sometimes. I thought that Nate wouldn't be coming over. What happened? He awkwardly walks in before closing the door. His hands immediately go back into his the pockets of his skinny jeans.

"Hey, are you, uh, alright?" he asks, looking at a picture on the wall. It was my school picture from first grade. To tell you the truth, it was the only good one.

"Yeah, I'm pretty fine," I tell him. He gives me a confused look.

"So that means that you don't have a headache?"

"Actually, I have a headache, nausea, dizziness and a small case of amnesia," I admit. None of these things were a big deal to me. It's all temporary. Besides, throwing up isn't really that bad. No, I'm not telling girls to become bulimic. Seriously, don't become bulimic!

"I don't get how you can say you're fine if you're going through that," he says as he sits on the unoccupied end of the floral couch. My parents and flowers.. Seriously.

"Well, it's all temporary. And so is the concussion," I add in.

"You have a concussion, too?"

"Good thing it's only a slight one. It took me nearly two hours to get the Biology homework done with Nicole. I think I'll be missing some school, too. Gives me an excuse to just lay back and relax." I'm happy to be missing some school. Now that I think about it, I really could use the R&R.

"Aren't you mad at me?" he asks. "You should be mad at me. Why are you just laying there acting like nothing ever happened? Do you think that's gonna change anything in the past? Well, guess what? It's not going to, ever. Just quit acting like everything's fine when it really isn't!"

"I'm just trying to stay positive here," I try to defend myself.

"You're just making everything worse. Look, if you're hurt, tell me. Don't go around faking that you're perfectly fine, because you're not."

"Well, compared to you guys, I'm much better off. I'm lucky enough to have my parents home most of the time. Unlike Shane and Jason, I didn't really have my innocence stolen from me." Nate winced at that. "And I'm happy with the amazing friends that I have. All four of them."

"Well, two of them are pretty crappy friends," he grumbles. I sit up and put my hand on his shoulder reassuringly.

"And they have time to redeem themselves." It felt so good to see Nate start to smile again.

"Come to the game on Friday," he says. "Your crappy friends will redeem themselves then."

"I can't wait."

**XoLAGOHxO**

You know, after two days, a girl can seriously feel better. I wasn't dizzy anymore, my concentration's been getting better, and I've been staying home resting while attempting the homework I printed out online. And as I'm trying to brush my wet hair and slip on my new graffiti Chucks, I couldn't help but seriously smile. The bruise is starting to die down a little bit, and the make-up that Jason dropped off yesterday covers it perfectly.

"Hurry up, we have to walk, and we're gonna be late if you take any longer!" Nicole whines.

"Complaining will only make me go slower," I say in a sing-song voice as I bend over to shake any extra water from my hair. Yes, I can shake my head without having it be in pain.

"So what was that again about redeeming themselves?"

"Nate said that he and Shane would make up for sending me to the hospital by doing something at the game. My biggest guess is winning," I shrug before grabbing one of my hoodies and walking out the door.

"Yeah, just winning a game. Green Oak's known for an awesome team. It's gotta be something bigger," she reasons. We were already walking towards the school.

"I've always hated that name, Green Oak. It sounds so.. Artificial," I say before shivering for added effect.

"What do you mean by artificial?"

"Have you ever heard of an oak tree that's green. Sure, red oak is natural, but green oak is so, yikes." We both start laughing at this. Wow, I say weird things sometimes.

Throughout the entire walk, we try coming up with things that the boys could possibly be planning. I was still sticking to my idea of a total blowout victory. But Nicole just came up with the most ridiculous outcomes.

"_Maybe they'll sing to you!"_

"_Maybe they'll dress up as chickens!"_

"_Or how about shaving their gorgeous hair!"_

Okay, the last one would definitely make me laugh. That was the most absurd one because Shane never lets anyone touch his hair. But if only Shane just cut off one lock.. If only.

We were nearing the school now. "So, who are we playing against?" I ask Nicole.

"I think it's Lakewood, but they're not really that good. Like, their mascot's the bull dogs. We're the tigers!" She pumps up her arms and yells, "I've got tiger pride!" I laugh at her all the way to the bleachers. The marching band was performing, but I was paying more attention to the color guard.

"Wait, don't these guys usually perform during half time?" I ask no one in particular.

"I heard something else was planned for half time," I hear Kate say from behind me. I turn around and see that Dave was right next to her.

"I've got a rough feeling I know what it is," Nicole slightly mumbles to herself.

"What was that?" Dave asks.

"Oh, nothing. Just go back to watching the amazing Green Oak marchers!" Nicole cheers. They both give her a funny look before they start making out. I look away and try to block out their PDA. It's the acronym for Public Display of Affection.

"You know what? Let's go find better seats," I say before dragging Nicole with me closer to the field. We were more centered now and had a much better view of the game, even if it meant being a bit more squished.

"Eep! I see Jason! He's number 13!" she squeals. "Okay, I know, that's not a lucky number, but oh my God, he looks so hot when he's stretching!"

"Ah, the perks of being single," I muse. She jabs her elbow in my side.

"Hey, the game's about to start."

"And I'm not gonna pay attention," I say before bringing my attention to the score board. Okay, I was actually looking at the game, if only a little bit. After the first half, Lakewood was losing by nearly ten points. No surprise there. Then I see some people from stage crew come out onto the field with microphones and a keyboard. This got people really curious, which I could tell from all the whispers. A person adjusts one of the mic stands next to the keyboard as they set it up. Okay, this is really making me wonder.

I hear whooping and clapping and try looking around to see what the big deal was. That's when I see Nate and Shane in their uniforms running towards the musical equipment. Nate sits down by the keyboard as Shane grabs a mic. Oh God, do I want to see what's gonna happen?

"Sorry that this isn't the marching band, but we owe one of our friends a serious apology," Shane says into the mic. "And we thought, why not showcase our hidden talents?" Nate continues. Then Shane starts singing.

_The best thing about tonight's that we're not fighting_

_Could it be that we have been this way before?_

_I know you don't think that I am trying_

_I know you're wearing thin down to the core_

He was singing Fall For You! But then Nate sings the chorus.

_But hold your breath_

_Because tonight will be the night_

_That I will fall for you over again_

_Don't make me change my mind_

_Or I won't live to see another day_

_I swear it's true_

_Because a girl like you is impossible to find_

_You're impossible to find_

I'm so happy that they picked this song. In some ways, it was somewhat me and Shane's song. Our song. I can't help but feel giddy when I think about it that way. They finish two minutes later. I'm not sure if they injured their tough rep, or if they're thought of as sweet and sensitive guys. I think it was the latter since most people were cheering while others were in shock. I was one of the shocked ones.

"Jenny, was that song for you?" Nicole asks me over the loud applause.

"Shane and I danced to that song," I tell her. "And he sang it to me while we danced."

"Psh, and I thought Jason was the sap."

**Man, thanks to my jackass of a brother, my mom's threatening to like, ban me from the computer and not write this story. He's just so obsessed with watching pointless YouTube vids that he never lets me write anything. Blame him for the late updates! This would've been up so much earlier if it weren't for him. **

**I don't deserve all the reviews, but I love them anyways! My record for a chapter is 30, and even if I don't deserve all of the reviews, let's try breaking it!**


	30. RB2

**A/N - Okay, right now, I don't care that I have literally seven hours of homework awaiting me, most of it being late, I need to write a fucking chapter. I'm so sorry for the wait, but I've had like, such a busy week, so much homework. Honors History has like, four essays. Research paper on Galileo. A kajillion flash cards for Spanish. Homework from Honors Science that takes over an hour to do. Oh yeah, I switched homerooms due to me being in Orchestra and the office thought that I skipped school yesterday, when I didn't! My entire family thought I got kidnapped cuz the office called them and told them I was absent. I'm talking aunts and uncles and cousins, and I've mentioned before that my family's huge.**

**And today, I found my locker to be broken. I couldn't open it cuz the thing that the lock locks on, it wouldn't push up to open my locker. Somebody took something, put gash marks in it and twisted it. I don't know how they did that, but I managed to get it open several minutes later, took me just as long to just close it. I had to whack my lock from the inside. Then I missed my bus. But I got another one to come get me. HORRIBLE WEEK!!**

**BTW, we didn't break the record ****L**

The crowd cheered as the final quarter ended, Green Oak beating Lakewood 40-28. "Yes, we won! We fucking won!" I cover my ears to block out the sounds of Nicole's squealing. She was way too overly excited. "And we are so going to the after party!"

Whoa, wait, what after party? "I thought that after that fiasco last week, there'd be no more parties."

"Psh, Green Oak's demand of the Grey parties are never ending. They can't just end it like that. So yeah, there's an after party, just no alcohol. Instead, it's a pool party." Nicole goes back to cheering for the win.

"How come I didn't hear any of this?" I ask her. Seriously, I should've known instead of just right now. "Look, I know I was out of it for a couple days, but you could've told me beforehand so I could've at least brought my bathing suit."

"Well, they bought you a new one. From Juicy Couture, actually. They also bought you a cover-up for it, too. I just brought over my pink one-piece." I'm getting sick of these guys buying me things. I didn't want to use them for that. I just wanted us to be like, I don't know, friends? Things would be so much simpler if everyone's feelings were totally platonic. Unfortunately, nothing can go the way I plan, can it?

"I'm happy about the cover-up. How much do I owe them? I can't just let them buy all of that for me." Nicole swats at my shoulder.

"Jenny, knowing that it's Juicy Couture, you should be able to estimate the price. Aren't you a math genius? Besides, you don't owe them anything. This is part of their apology for the.. Accident." She says, putting emphasis on the last word.

"I thought the apology was that song. I mean, they did a pretty awesome job."

"That was half of the apology since both guys hurt you. Just think of it like that. Let's head into the locker room to meet the guys!" She grabs my hand and drags me towards the open doors of the front gym, which led to the locker rooms.

"Wait, it's a guys' locker room! We can't just go in! What if some guys are like, showering or something? Does the phrase 'My poor innocent eyes' mean anything to you?" She knew all about me not being able to stand sights like that. And Shane trying to flash me three weeks ago didn't help it at all.

"That's the fun of it! We'll get to cause a riot, and it'll be hilarious. Then we'll be the talk of the whole school. Okay, I'm just really excited. This night has been awesome so far, and Jason's so sweet, and Nate and Shane did that for you, and we creamed Lakewood, and I really want to have some hardcore fun tonight. So I'm thinking; BOYS' LOCKER ROOM!" She runs inside, heading to that very destination. I run after her, having very little choice to this situation. Besides, I could try stopping her.

"We're already the talk of the school! I mean, freshmen haven't caused this much ruckus, like, ever!" I yell as I try catching up. She ran track last year, and trust me when I say she's fast. Really, really fast. I just have to be slow and physically unfit. I lost my breath within a minute. "Still not a good idea!"

"Come on, Jenny. You have to make up for the loss of drama from the past two days." She walks inside the locker room as I stand there, paralyzed with shock. Hell no am I going in there. I am so not going in there! She walks out with an annoyed expression, grabs my arm, and forcefully drags me inside. I immediately feel steam on my skin once I was fully in there.

"Good thing all the guys are showering. It doesn't smell so bad," Nicole comments as she walks along the lockers, simply looking around. I follow her, scared of being alone. I take my sweatshirt off and drape it over my arm. Man, the steam's making things really hot. I see one guy walk out with a towel around his waist. I pull Nicole with me to hide behind some lockers.

"Okay, we're not spies. Why are we sneaking around?" she asks.

"He was in a fucking towel, man. I don't want any of them to see us!" I angrily whisper.

"But that's the point! We're trying to make up for the loss of drama."

"Didn't people hear about my concussion? And dude, I really don't need anymore drama."

"Nobody found out, we kept our lips sealed about it. School isn't fun without the drama."

"Whatever. We can leave now 'cause I see Jason's almost done." He was changing into a t-shirt and some shorts. Nate and Shane were doing the same thing, too. They were still a bit wet from their showers. I hadn't noticed Nicole leave my side since I was staring off into space. I look around trying to find her, and see that she's laughing at something that Jason said. Nate and Shane were also laughing.

"What's the joke?" I ask when I finally reach them.

"Oh, Jason just made the funniest pirate joke!" Nicole says before laughing again.

"Yeah, it's not even crappy," Shane agrees.

"I would like to sink my anchor into your lagoon," Jason says in a deep pirate voice. I couldn't help it, I double over laughing. That was probably the sickest pirate joke I ever heard, but it was so funny. Everyone else starts laughing again.

"Damn, that was hilarious," I manage to say through my laughs.

"Alrighty, enough with dirty pirate jokes. Let's go home," Nate suggests.

"To the Ferrari!" Shane exclaims as he literally skips out the doors to the parking lot.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Wow, Denise, you've really outdone yourself." Nicole and the guys were getting ready for the pool party while I was walking around the pool, staring in awe at the decorations. Denise was cooking burgers and hot dogs on the two grills, and she had a Green Oak Football sign hung up by the entrance. There were chairs and recliners around, and a whole table of munchies and refreshments. She even had balloons.

"So, about one hundred kids are coming, right?" she makes sure as she flips some more burgers. "A lot of kids are fans of the team, eh?"

"Yeah, I guess so. Your sons ARE the stars. Even though Nate's a freshman, he's still on Varsity. I'm not sure if that's ever been done. The other partiers should be here in about twenty minutes."

"I'm so proud of them, really. Oh, please cook the burgers while I get to the hot dogs," she says, handing me her spatula before grabbing some tongs and heading to the other grill. I use the spatula to put fresh patties on the grill as I flipped the other ones. Once they were cooked well, I put them on that silver container next to the grill. This process went on for another five minutes before Nicole and the guys came into the pool area.

"Yum, I'd like my burger well done please!" Nicole squeals as she sits down in a chair.

"Trust me, they're all gonna be well done. After reading the book Peeps by Scott Westerfeld, I'm never letting anyone eat anything medium or medium rare."

"Wow, you're paranoid even when it comes to your meat," Shane jokes. I ignore him as I continue flipping the burgers.

"Why are you cooking them now? They're just gonna get cold," Nicole points out.

"I'll just reheat them on here if anyone wants one," I simply say. I'm only gonna make about forty since most people like hot dogs, and because not a lot of people would want to eat anyways. We have enough beef for about 60, but I'll just wait and see what happens.

Pretty soon, some of the Varsity team members were hanging in the back of the pool wearing some under armor with their swim trunks. I didn't really know their names or anything, so I just went right on with cooking. Denise shoos me away and takes over the grill.

"Hey, Jenny, lemme introduce you to one of my buds," Shane says, dragging me to the only guy wearing a speedo. I try stifling my laugh, and was fortunately successful. When he turns around, I recognize him as the guy making out with that chick on my bus on the first day.

"Hey, I'm Brad," he introduces himself. He awkwardly holds out his hand, and I stiffly shake it. I'm not sure if he knows that I view him as some guy who randomly kisses random chicks. Yup, random. "Yeah, I'm Jenny."

His hand was still tightly gripping mine, and he only lets go when I dig one of my nails sharply into his palm. That always gets guy to let go of you. He scowls at me when Shane goes to attend to some more guests. Looks like the brothers are being more hospitable tonight. Also, making sure nobody sneaks in booze.

"What the hell was that for?" Brad asks me. I have to crane my neck to look at him since he's so tall.

"Sorry, your grip was a tad bit tight," I apologize in my sarcastic voice.

"What's with the attitude, babe?" He didn't just say babe. Oh no he didn't.

"Shut up, dick face." He was a dick face. Seeing the way he publicly made out with that girl, he's probably more of a whore than Shane is.

"Aw, come on, give me a little break here," he says in his arrogant tone.

"Sorry, guys who make out with girls while I'm on their bus kind of turn me off." With that last word, I speed walk into the house.

Shane grabs my shoulder as I pass by and whispers, "The suit's in my room." I nod and go inside. Once I reach Shane's room, I see a shopping bag on his bed. Pulling out the two piece, my face flushes. It was like a white and light blue striped bandeau top with matching string bottoms. I pull out the cover up, and it's just a short white dress, also with a bandeau top. After five minutes, I study my reflection in one of Shane's mirrors. It looks like I've lost some weight due to the concussion. I didn't really eat that much, and when my body stops consuming food for two days, I can lose up to eight pounds. It's a dangerous weight loss, but it's not my fault.

I walk downstairs barefoot and go sit down by Nicole. Her one-piece was semi conservative. "So, what'd you think about it?" she asks. I could sense that she was laughing on the inside.

"God, if Shane picked that out, he's a huge perv," I huff. She laughs and shakes her head.

"We all know he is, but Nate picked all of that, actually. He chose blue because Shane told him it was your favorite color."

"Wow, Nate? That's so, well, unlike him." I'm bewildered that Nate would've picked something that revealing. Like I said, I'm not taking off the cover-up.

"Seems like the innocent dude's got that hormonally charged side!" she jokes. I lightly punch her arm, telling her in our own language to stop it. It was an uncomfortable subject. "Alright, fine, fine."

"Well, I'm gonna go talk to Nate," I tell her as I get up.

"I'll go look for Jason then," she replies.

I find him pretty quickly, and he was talking to this girl that I didn't recognize. It seemed friendly enough, so I wasn't suspicious. He sees me and motions me over to them. The girl looked really nervous.

"Jenny, this is Christie. She's new here, and she's in my science class." I smile as Christie says hi and I shake her hand. Her slightly wavy brunette hair just passed her shoulders, and she had the biggest green eyes that I'd ever seen. I could tell that she was legitimately nice.

"How's Green Oak treating you?" I ask her.

"It's pretty good so far. Some of the guys are strange, but other than that, it's awesome." She give me a small smile. I guess she doesn't smile big.

"Well, if you need to get around anywhere, just look for me since my classes are all over the place."

"I haven't seen you in school this week. It's pretty small, so I guessed that I would've recognized you," she ponders.

"I've been out sick for the past three days, but I'll be back on Monday." I look at Nate in the corner of my eye and see that he's tense. Just mentioning that accident makes him feel guilty.

"Whoo, pool party!" Fauzul jumps in out of nowhere.

"Yeah, let's go eat some hot dogs!" Caroline says with him.

"Uh, bye?" I say to the air after they disappeared.

"That was, uh, weird," Christie stutters.

"The return of Fauzul and Caroline," Nate mutters as he shakes his head. "Get used to it, Christie." Nate and I laugh at Christie's dumbfounded expression, but she soon joins in the laugh, too. We hear a splash and see that Shane, Brad and some other guys were in the pool. They were dragging girls down by their feet.

"Hey, Jenny, let's jump in!" Christie suggests. I stutter, thinking of a response. I can't jump in. The make-up would come off and everyone would see my bruise again.

"Uh, Jenny can't swim for her life," Nate says to her.

"Oh, we can just go in the shallow end then."

"No, I'm still a little bit sick. I think I'll just sit back tonight and eat." I need to avoid moisture at all costs tonight. Sure, other people have seen the bruise, but not everybody. It's better to hide it.

"Aw, well, anyone else to ask?" She seems a little bit lonely. I really wish that I could go swimming with her, I really did.

"My friend Nicole's the other Asian in that pink one-piece. I'm pretty sure you guys will get along just fine." I point her towards Nicole and I watch her walk over. After two minutes of talking and some laughing, they both jump in at the shallow end together, and Jason does, too.

"To make you feel better, I'll stay dry tonight," Nate tries to cheer me up.

"I never said thanks for that song tonight. You and Shane were awesome. Oh yeah, look at what I'm wearing." I motion my hands down my upper body, emphasizing just how promiscuous it looked, even with a cover-up on.

"I simply couldn't resist." He was so cute, I couldn't possibly be mad at him. How'd he manage to act like Shane yet be innocent at the same time?

"Ha ha, anchor, lagoon," I laugh, remembering Jason's joke.

"Man, you're still laughing at that? Oh yeah, guess what?!" he suddenly gets excited.

"Yeah, what's up?"

"We just bought Rock Band 2. And we are so gonna play it right now since you can't swim. Race you upstairs!" he says before running inside.

"No fair!" I yell as I run after him, trying to catch up. I felt like a little kid again. Technically, I was, but it still felt nice. Next thing you know, Nate and I were having a vocals battle singing My Own Worst Enemy by Lit. After the song was over, I beat Nate by twenty thousand points. It was only on Hard, though.

"Man, I just totally whooped your ass."

"The lyrics were weird, okay? I don't sing songs with weird lyrics. Like, sleeping with clothes on. Who doesn't do that? He makes it seem like he sleeps naked or something." Nate was so making up excuses.

"Maybe he does. Some people do that. Don't blame it on the lyrics. Ever tried singing In Bloom by Nirvana? Yeah, that song's the shit."

"Yeah, they called nature a whore." He starts making those tsk tsk sounds.

"We should like, start coming up with ideas for the skit," I remind him. The project and the Geometry one was due really soon.

"Oh shit! I totally forgot about that!" he exclaims.

"We still have some time. I've already done a major part of the PowerPoint, you can do the report, and we'll work on that little play together. I'm thinking of a scene where you kill me."

"Wait, I'll kill you?!"

"I'll dress up as that maid that reminds you of your deceased lover that you hate, and you'll kill me, cook me, then feed me to your current wife." I read that somewhere in a book.

"Please tell me that's fictional." He was starting to become pale.

"Nate, Nero was really that messed up. Just like, grab some plastic knife and stab me, and talk about cooking me to your wife or something. Heck, I'll even dress up as a maid for added effect."

"I know, how about we have a modern twist? I think it'd be best with improv, though." He was right, the skit would be funnier if it was improvised.

"Okay, that sounds good. Just make sure you'll have the maid outfit in school on Monday," I say.

"Hmm, don't worry. I won't have trouble with that," he winks. I grab one of Shane's pillows and throw it at him.

"God, you're turning into Shane!" I tried to sound serious, but I couldn't help but laugh, still.

"Unlike Shane, I'm cute when I'm making those jokes." He was semi right. They were both cute when they joked like that, but I didn't say that. Instead, we went back to playing Rock Band 2 in peace.

**A/N - Definitely not long enough for me. You guys deserved so much more. Don't forget about those awards! Please nominate this story, or Jenny. I really don't mean to sound desperate, but if I'm giving up studying time for you guys.. Yeah. I should update Saturday night or Sunday morning/night. I need to read the Question of Hu, Breaking Dawn, and TTYL. **

**Oh yeah, I'm also considering joining the Reading Olympics that my county's holding. I love reading THAT much, but I'm pretty sure it'll take up a lot of my time if I do join. Ha. **

**REVIEW!!**


	31. White Chicks

**A/N - I am craving ramen.. Seriously craving that stuff. If I forgot to reply to your review, I'm so sorry! I read each one in school, but since I can't reply, that sucks. When I get home, the mail isn't high lighted since I already checked it, and it gets confusing when it gets to over twenty reviews. Eh.. Sorry this chapter's so crappy. It goes more in depth with the new character.. I see some are already suspicious. Hahahaha. I've almost reached 15 K hits! Just like, thirty more hits.. Should I present a reward for the 500th reviewer? **

**How about I PM a sneak peek of the next chapter to the 500th reviewer a day before it goes up? I'm not sure if I can do that though, but I'll try. And not reviewing and waiting for other people to review to take your prize won't work.. .**

"Dude, an hour of Rock Band's enough for tonight. We all know that I kick your ass in everything so you might as well give up now. Besides, I'm totally craving a hot dog." I turn off the X-Box and put away the microphones before adjusting my cover-up and walking out to the pool, Nate following.

"Hey, I'm not really that bad."

"You're right, I'm just that much better than you are."

He knew I was right, and I felt like rubbing it in his face. After singing like that tonight, you'd think that he would be able to beat me at one song. Just one. But nope, I cream him every single time. I suck at singing, too. It gets to the point where I become bored, and Nate gets more pissed each time he loses. Good thing it's not a serious form of pissing off. We all know about his anger issues, right?

"Enjoy the glory. It won't last long."

"Yes, I'm definitely enjoying it!"

I grab one of the pre-assembled hot dogs and squirt some mustard on it. I stuff a huge bite in my mouth, consuming about half of it. I'm not sure which side of the family that I got it from, and my mouth doesn't seem big, but I can stuff a lot of food in it. Trust me, a lot. You don't want to know how much. I finish my first hot dog thirty seconds later and grab my second one. This time, I take my time.

"Jenny, do you always eat like this?" Nate seems like he's worried. What am I gonna do? OD on fat?

"I haven't had good grub in two days, man. I've probably lost five pounds, at least. I need to gain the weight back." With that said, I go and get a burger, leaving Nate with some of his friends.

"Damn chicka, this is like déjà vu," Nicole says as she gets a burger, too.

"Wow, you guys are pretty hungry," Christie laughs, drinking some punch.

"So, how was the pool?" Their hair was still pretty wet.

"We played that chicken fight thing where the girls get on the guys' shoulders. Nicole was on Jason while I had Brad." Christie sips her punch, looking around.

"Ooh, so you like Brad?" Nicole teases.

"Oh, no, no, of course not! I just started here, so I don't really like any guys yet."

"Anyone catch your eye?" I ask.

"Well, kind of, but I'm not really sure. I don't know him that well, but he's pretty nice and sweet."

"Aw, he sounds cool, even with that vague description you gave us." Nicole bites into her burger.

"I know, he's awesome." Christie lets out a small giggle, still drinking her punch.

"So, freshman, sophomore, junior or senior?" I wonder.

"He's a freshman, and his hair's awesome."

"Awesome hair is a definite must," I proclaim, high-fiving Christie.

"Jason looks good with curly and straight hair, so HA!" Nicole seems pretty proud of Jason these days. And a bit too happy, too.

"Well, yeah, you can have that boyfriend of yours. I'm sticking to my TWO guys." It didn't feel right saying that since it made me sound like a two-timer.

"Whoa, what do you mean 'two' guys?" Christie asks.

"She's in this heated love triangle. Trust me, you don't wanna get involved."

"Eh, it's not so bad, really," I assure them. Who was I kidding? It really was bad.

"Like, what's happened so far?"

"An unbelievable amount of shit's happened ever since the first day. We can't explain it all right now," Nicole says.

"It's just been.. My locker getting burned down, New York, Chinatown, Atlantic City, and so much more. Then there's also the drama. Like, that suicide or that concussion."

"So that's what the other kids were talking about when they mentioned suicide? I mean, they really didn't say much, but, that's what they were referring to?" Christie asks, genuinely curious.

"Yeah, it's pretty dramatic. Since you seem cool, unlike almost every single chick at Green Oak, we can trust you with the information. Like, seriously. You're the only girl I've met so far this year that isn't some slutty whore or is a total bitch or scares me."

"Nice way of putting it," Nicole sarcastically says.

"Sorry, I meant that you're cool! Geez, that concussion still has my brain messed up."

"No, Christie, she's always like that."

"Okay, wow. That's like, whoa. So, you got a concussion?" Christie asks me. I swallow some of my burger before replying.

"That's the secret why I missed school. It was an accident, though, so no biggie. I can't swim because then the make-up would rub off and reveal that gigantic bruise on my cheek."

"You have a bruise, too? Did the cheerleaders do it?"

"All the injuries are from Nate and Shane, but it was mainly accidents. I kinda had that bruise coming, and I brought the concussion on myself."

"Chink, what the hell are you talking about? We know that Nate's got anger issues. Yes, I heard that from Jason. We also know that you've got too much of a good heart. You got that concussion by protecting him!" Nicole tries to knock some sense into me. I stand there, finishing up my burger.

"Dude, shush! Nobody knows about that concussion. They thought I was sick. But like I said, it was an accident, and I don' blame them."

"Jenny, I agree with Nicole. You're a bit too forgiving," Christie says.

"Thank you!" Nicole yells, giving Christie a high-five. "At least _someone_ agrees with me."

"Okay, I'm officially full. Let's go hang out inside the house," I say, pulling them inside with me. Like I mentioned before, I need to avoid water, and standing right next to a pool isn't going to help.

"So, what can we do in here?" Christie asks.

"We can try watching a movie," I suggest. "I'm pretty sure Nate's got some good movies up in his room." For some reason, Christie's eyes get even bigger at this, if that's possible.

"Or we could try DDR in Jason's room," Nicole says.

"Shane just bought Rock Band 2," I continue.

"Wow, looks like each guys' room serves as a different form or entertainment for you guys," Christie laughs.

"Now that you put it that way, it feels like we're using them. But who cares? I vote for White Chicks!" Next thing you know, the three of us are sitting on Nate's bed laughing at the comedy.

"Oh my God! 'It's not just a bag, it's Prada.' That's my favorite line," Christie laughs. This was my most favorite comedy ever, and we just finished watching it.

"The sleepover scene with that pink dildo!" Nicole exclaims.

"Don't forget 'Panties! Bush! Balls?! EWW!'" I remind them.

"Seriously, young kids think way too dirty these days," Nicole says, shaking her head.

"You can say that again. My sister's turning into a whore, too."

"I've just met you guys and you already scared me. Does your sister go to Green Oak, too? Mine's a junior," Christie asks.

"Nope, she's an eleven year old bitch that made me go buy condoms for her." I glare into space for added dramatic effect.

"Jenny, Gina's not _so_ bad," Nicole insists.

"Psh, try living with that.. Thing. God, I know I sound mean, but I really don't like her. Who gives a crap about the whole flesh and blood shit?"

"Oh, your sister goes to our school, too?" Nicole asks Christie, obviously trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, she's a junior named Lexie."

"Ooh, maybe Shane's met her or something! Is she like you? 'Cause if she is, that'd be totally awesome," I say.

"Well, she's a little different. Her hair's longer and whatnot. She hasn't mentioned anything about Shane, so I'm not sure. She didn't go to the party since she felt like studying."

"New students are a big thing at our school. You know, the super tiny student population. Wait, what time is it?" Nicole asks. I look at Nate's clock on the opposite wall and saw that it was just past midnight.

"Oh, my God! My mom's gonna kill me! I didn't even tell her about the after party!" I shriek.

"No, don't worry, I told her about it while you were in the shower. It's totally fine," Nicole reassures me.

"Aw, my curfew's 12:30. I live twenty minutes away on foot, so I need to go," Christie says.

"You can't leave without giving me a hug first!" I say before squishing her with one of my hugs. "Your official welcome to Green Oak hug," I chuckle when I let go of her. She hugs Nicole, too, before leaving Nate's room and walking downstairs.

"I like her," Nicole says. I definitely agree.

We both decided to go home since it was getting pretty late. I made plans with Nate and Shane to work on our projects tomorrow. To tell you the truth, Christie seemed like a pretty nice girl, and I'm hoping that we can become good friends. Jason drove both me and Nicole home. By the time I hit the sheets that night, I was totally exhausted with my brain going crazy with thoughts of Christie. She seems nice and cool. I'm right, aren't I?

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Bye mom! I'm going over to the Grey's house again since I need to work on that project!" I yell before leaving the house. I woke up about an hour ago and just had my brunch. Yeah, sleeping in isn't that good. My mom's being pretty nice these days, always letting me go over to the house. Always walking over there is giving my legs a pretty good work-out. I got to the house within forty-five minutes. Denise opens the door when I ring the bell.

"Oh, Jenny! Good afternoon. The two boys are upstairs working on their Geometry project," she says, letting me in.

"Good afternoon to you, too. We have a whole heck of a lot of work to do today." I go up to Shane's room to see Shane and Nate with a box and a bunch of foam and wires.

"Oh, hey Jenny," they both greet me. Surprisingly, they were both pretty absorbed in cutting the foam and taping it inside the box. We're supposed to make a plane with angles coming in and out of it, right? After two hours of cutting, taping, more cutting and inserting, we were finished.

"Looks good," Shane comments.

"Colorful," Nate adds in.

"I hate Geometry." We all laugh at my comment. "Nate, we really need to work on that report on Nero," I remind him. He groans, standing up.

"I'll help you guys," Shane offers. Nate and I look at him in total shock. He never helps, and this wasn't even his project. "I still feel guilty about that. I don't want your brain to go on overdrive."

"Aw, look at who's being cute and sweet," I tease him. "You don't really have to help us. The PowerPoint's almost done, and I can think and type super fast."

"Well, I want to. Nate, you can just kick back and relax." Nate gives Shane a suspicious look, but puts up his hands in defeat.

"If it gets me out of thinking about that fucked up emperor, fine with me." He plops down on Shane's bed, turning on the TV. "I'll just watch Hannah Montana in peace."

"Have fun with that," I laugh before going up to Nate's room. I sit down at his desk and turn on his Macbook Air. As it loads, I spin around to look at Shane.

"I've got a feeling that you don't really want to help me with this project."

"Eh, I still owe you, though. Besides, it's a good excuse to spend more time with you," he shrugs.

"Trust me, this dude that we're basing the project on, yeah. He's one messed up dickhead."

"What'd he do? Kill his mom?"

"Yup, he did just that."

"Did he hurt his lover?"

"Which one? He hurt a lot of them."

"Did he feel guilty for it? At all?"

"Nope, not once. He's got one heck of a cold heart."

"Well, my guilt's eating me up." I hear the the Mac finished loading, but I ignore it. Shane still feels guilty for that accident.

"Shane, it's in the past now. I forgive you, and I feel good. You were just angry."

"Everytime Nate or I become angry, you end up getting hurt. What happens if it becomes serious one day?"

"I trust you guys to have better judgment. If both of you have learned from this, then we should leave it behind us."

"Yeah, I've learned that I'm not good enough for you."

"Yes, you are," I assure him. My feelings are so conflicted right now.

"Then how come we're not _together_? Why are we still on the friendship level? If I was good enough for you, you wouldn't even have to think twice about Nate," he says. "I wouldn't have to keep wondering every second of the day."

"I'm so sorry, but.. I really don't know what to do or think anymore," I apologize.

"Call me when you've made your decision." He gets up and leaves. He didn't even hug me, or even say bye. It took me awhile, but I finally figured it out. He was pretty much saying that if I chose Nate, he wouldn't talk to me anymore, not even be my friend. If I chose Shane, we'd be together, but then there was Nate. I told myself that I already chose last week, and I don't think my decision's changed. I've just gotta make sure first. I need to find a way for all of this to not become a disaster. I need to manage to somehow make everyone happy. I just need to have that guarantee before I do anything drastic.

_One's happiness includes another's sacrifice._


	32. Costumes

**A/N - The 500th reviewer was Christie. Seriously, the girl I based the new character on was the 500th reviewer. Since I go to school with her, I guess that prize got taken away. Then I told my 499th reviewer that I'd give HER the prize, but then that'd mean delaying this update even further. I'm really sorry.. I didn't have time yesterday to write a preview. **

**Oh yeah, a reader wants me to support her story. I'm only doing it because I think it could have some serious potential! So JonasBrothers-KJNF, you better not disappoint! Haha, kidding. But seriously, make the story good. Check out her story Star Wishing. I like the plot, and if you review, she'll put up the first chapter more quickly. Check my reviews and you'll find her. Thank you SO much. **

There it was. The report for History. Five pages and double spaced. I did it all within twenty minutes, just typing without thinking. It's the same as my last report, pretty much. I can't focus on my homework. I can only focus on Shane and Nate, and that's what really bothers me. In so little time, my life went from being carefree and boring to dramatic and eventful. I'm not sure which one I liked better. That really scares me. How could I even ask myself that? Of course, I'd have to pick the former choice, but then I wouldn't have met the amazing people that I know today. I would go on with my empty hate. I save the document and close the laptop.

"This reminds me too much of Asian dramas." Great, now I'm talking to myself. Anyone who's watched Asian dramas, the plots are always different from the American ones. There's always some form of drama that's overly dramatic. Main ones are love triangles. I really hate that shape right now. Stupid polygon! Hmm, what to do right now? My guess is going home, but my mom's not expecting me for at least another two hours. The guys should be heading to football practice soon, which means that I'll be home alone. Well, not technically since Denise is downstairs. And for the next two hours, I spent my time with Denise watching The Forty Year Old Virgin.

**XoLAGOHxO**

The current situation's pretty hilarious. I mean, I'm in the bathroom and I'm putting on that maid costume. It wasn't really that hard to avoid the guys. I needed my time alone, and I rode the bus to school today and hid out in Ms. Thimm's room with Nate again. When Nate showed me this costume five minutes ago, I immediately said no. One look at it and it made my cheeks flush. It had a tight black corset, but the bra looking part was white. The poofy skirt had some polka dot lace underneath, and it had the signature small white square. After messing with the strings for two minutes, I manage to tightly pull it together. A girl walks into the bathroom, agenda in hand. She's about to open one of the stalls, but stops and stares at me.

"History project," I inform her.

"Must be _some_ project," she mumbles before going in the stall. I shrug and walk back into Ms. Thimm's room.

"Is this about prostitution?!" a random guy in my class asks.

"What the fuck? No!" Nate yells at him. "Yeah, like we're gonna do a play, in SCHOOL about prostitutes. Yeah, totally gonna happen."

"I still don't get why I'm the only one that's dressed up," I complain. Nate was in his normal clothes. Dark skinny jeans and a dress shirt. His jeans had something in them, though. Something for the skit.

"Okay, that gives you guys some extra credit. Let's do the play first," Ms. Thimm says. Have I told you guys that this is total improv? Yeah, I really hope this turns out well. I walk into the clearing of the desks and grab the feather duster I left on Ms. Thimm's desk. I pretend to dust stuff off. I hear some people giggle, but I can't blame them. I was being totally ridiculous. I prefer this scene instead of the one where he kills his step-sister due to her not being able to have any of his kids. That would've been awkward. I'm not even sure if he did this to a maid, but I read it in a book somewhere, so why not?

I get into the maid mood by singing a random song. Since this skit is in the modern setting, I start singing, "The seven things I hate about you! The seven things I hate about you, oh you!" The class starts hysterically laughing. "You're vain, your games, you're insecure! You love me, you like her. You make me laugh, you make me cry, I don't know which side to buy." I continue singing the song very off-key and dance around with the duster.

"Stop that singing! I'm trying to rule Rome here, so bitch, shut up!" Nate, er, I mean, Nero, yells.

"Yes, sir." I use my free hand to salute him. Hey, I'm improvising, and I want to make this a comedy! The laughs continue getting louder. Even Ms. Thimm's face was turning red.

"God, I hate just looking at your ugly face. You remind me of my dead wife!"

"Uh, the one that 'committed suicide' or the one that you exiled?" I saw Nate trying to keep his laughter intact. "Sir, I really can't keep track. I'm just an illiterate maid." Ms. Thimm was seriously laughing, along with the rest of the class.

His hand grabs my throat, making it seem like he was trying to choke me, even though he was hardly using any pressure. "You dare disrespect me? I just executed someone yesterday. I don't have any problem doing that again today." I was supposed to look terrified, but that's just impossible. This is way too funny.

"Oh, no, please, sir. I would love to spend my entire life cleaning for a manwhore like you," I sarcastically beg. He takes his other hand and reaches into his pocket and pulls out one of those small water guns. A guy in the back exclaims, "Nice one!"

Ms. Thimm didn't even bother to tell him to be quiet. Nate squirts some on my face, and he makes the gun noise with his mouth. I pretend to have been shot and I fall back and lie on the ground. I close my eyes, but I still sneak a peek at him.

"Awesome, now I can cook you for my current wife. Now, how will I plan on killing her?" He puts his chin in his hand, and after five seconds, bows. Everyone starts applauding as he pulls me off the ground. I wipe some water from my face before doing an overly proper curtsy.

"Okay, that was short, but hilarious," Ms. Thimm compliments us. Wow, it really was short. Not even a minute.

"Oh, please. I don't deserve all this applause," I joke. The laughter spikes up before slowly dying down again.

"Okay, time for that PowerPoint," Ms. Thimm reminds us. Nate pulls out one of those USB drives and connects it to her laptop. Over the next five minutes, we present the PowerPoint and talk about our emperor's reign, and overall his life. People would frequently ask questions during the presentation despite the teacher's protests. Nate hands her the printed report and I grab my bag to go to the bathroom to get changed.

"Wait!" Ms. Thimm stops me. I look back at her with a confused expression. She pulls out her digital camera. "This is so going in the yearbook." I grab the feather duster and strike a pose with it. After a couple snaps, she puts the camera away. Some kids pull out their cell phones, and I pose for a couple more pictures.

"I'm so posting these pics on my Facebook," one of the guys say.

"Guys, check my MySpace tonight," another one says.

"Have people forgotten about Xangas?" a girl asks.

"Psh, those things are dead. Remember, Facebook!" the first guy says.

"Add me!" I tell them before rushing to the bathroom with my clothes.

**XoLAGOHxO**

Throughout the rest of the day, people kept talking to me about the incident in History class. I'd get high fives and noogies, even though I hated noogies. Everywhere I turned, there was some form of praise, usually coming from guys. As the day drew on, I walked by one of the bulletin boards and noticed something on it. I backtrack my steps and see a picture of me in that maid outfit.

The caption said, "Is this cute or slutty?" There was a poll underneath it. People would sign their name under their choice. I smile when I see that Kate and her friends signed beneath the "Cute" section. Even Christie did it, too. I didn't see Nicole's name anywhere. Only a few girls that I didn't know signed beneath the "Slutty" category. I choose to ignore it, but I memorize the two names. Casey and Ashley. I have a feeling that this was Angela's extended crew, the group of blonde girls with the horrible roots. My assumptions are always right, aren't they?

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Twenty new friend requests" read my Facebook homepage. I confirm each one, recognizing some people from my History class. I immediately receive a wall post, and it's from Brad. "Damn, I'd so hit that." Gross, he's being a total pervert again. Nothing out of the normal, eh? I don't even bother replying. He doesn't deserve my time. I nearly have a heart attack when I hear a knocking on my window. I turn around and see that it was Nate on the other side. He was hanging from the trellis with the roses. I open the door and let him in.

"I'm not letting you sleep over again."

"That's not why I'm here."

"My mom's downstairs, and my sister is in her room across the hall. I'm not sure if you could stay." Once again, he was popping up in my room.

"Jason's waiting in his car on the next street. This'll be really quick," he assures me. He pulls the maid costume from his backpack and hands it over to me. "Think of it as a late birthday present." He winks before climbing out my window and down the trellis. I unfold the costume and a paper falls out. I pick it up, and I almost laugh when I read it.

_Girls dressed up as maids is my biggest fetish. _

_Love, Nate._

**A/N - I'm really sorry that this is so short. My friend Janine came over and we worked on our essays for History, which are extremely late. It was either this or nothing. Which one would you guys prefer? Exactly, that's what I thought. Winky-wink. **

**I just read that Pyro told people to not vote for the authors that are begging for nominations. . Alrighty.. **

**Today's the autumn equinox! Yesterday was my two-year anniversary with my braces. HOORAY! Should I post the maid outfit on my profile?**


	33. The Plan

**A/N - Okay, so.. Gym was horrible today! We did the mile around the track. I'd be fine if we walked it, but we were forced to run and we were timed, too. If anyone forgot, a mile is equivalent to four laps around a regular high school track. I finished it with twenty seconds to spare. Surprisingly, my legs don't hurt.. **

**Oh yeah, I posted a new story. It'll be totally different from this one, and it's gonna be much harder to write. This story's getting hard to write, too, since it's getting closer and closer to Jenny's decision. Remember to vote for LowBreeze's Video Girl story in Starsnuffers' Camp Rock awards. Monica's so much hotter than Jenny, it's ridiculous. **

"Hey Christie, what's up?" I ask her on my way to gym.

"Oh, nothing really. I totally love what you did yesterday. It was hilarious."

"Ha ha, give the credit to Nate. He picked the outfit out. I gotta say, the dude's really good at hiding his pervertedness." I laugh, remembering the note from yesterday.

"What do you mean 'pervertedness'?"

"I know he seems shy and all, but there's this funny side where he acts like the typical Green Oak jock." Christie nervously looks around before pulling me into the girls' bathroom.

"Hey, uh, you never really explained that love triangle to me. I mean, who do you like more?"

"Well, I'm not exactly sure as of yet. Why do you ask?"

"Oh, nothing, trust me. It's nothing," she reiterates. "Get to gym before you're late." She runs out the bathroom, and I slowly walk out and head towards the locker rooms, still confused. She pulls me into a bathroom, interrogates me, then walks away.

I avoid the glares from the slutty girls in the locker room and quickly sit down in my squad. I look in Shane's direction, and saw him talking to some guys that I never saw before. Usually, he'd come to me right away and we'd talk, but he's ignoring me. I guess that threat was a serious one. He won't talk to me unless I choose to date him instead of Nate. Man, why does he have to be so difficult?

"Okay, all the freshmen and sophomores need to do the mile today," Mr. Wendler announces. A mile? Walk or run? As if reading my mind, he says, "You need to run it, and you'll lose points if you walk." A large portion of the class groans as the juniors smirk, Shane being one of them. I reluctantly stand up as everyone goes out to the football field in the back. Like most football fields, it had a track all around it.

"Just in case you guys forget, a mile's four laps. You have twelve minutes, and if you take longer than that, you'll need to come after school and redo it." I groan even more. I am definitely not athletic, and I just got my period this morning, too. Yeah, that'll really help me. As other people stretch at the start, I re-tie my laces into double knots.

"Have fun," Shane says as he passes by me. He walks to the center of the field and sets up a game of flag football with those guys I didn't know. When no one was paying attention except for me, he put the back of his hand to his forehead, feigning fainting. Oh, so he thought that I was gonna faint. Maybe I'll lose my breath, but I'm definitely not fainting. I did this last year in eighth grade, and my legs pretty much turned to jelly to the point where I couldn't walk on them.

"Remember guys, twelve minutes!" Mr. Wendler says right before clicking his stopwatch. I start off on a jog, and Shane follows right beside me. What the hell?

"Why are you following me?" I ask him, quickening my pace.

"I wanted to apologize for being so hard on you," he says.

"What?!" I trip over my own feet and fall down. "Fuck!"

Shane helps pull me up. "Hey, are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine. What were you saying again?" I start running again, Shane still following me.

"Do I really have to explain myself? I was a jerk on Saturday, and I wasn't being reasonable. Don't think this just came out of nowhere. I left you alone three days for a reason."

I was starting to lose my breath already, and I only finished half a lap. "What, lemme guess. You were thinking."

"Yeah, I really was. Well, I was planning more than thinking about it. I think that you'll like this plan actually."

"What plan are you talking about?" I slow down to try and catch my breath, getting closer to starting the second lap.

"You're gonna be mad at me, I just know it."

"Just say it. Sure, you being Shane, it'll probably some fucked up plan, but I don't think it'll surprise me," I assure him.

"That was two forty!" Mr. Wendler shouts at me. Okay, so I used up almost a quarter of my time. I guess this pace is pretty good.

"I want to set Christie up with somebody. I really don't think you'll like the idea."

"As long as he's not a manwhore, I'm totally fine with whoever you want to set her up with."

"Anyone?" he asks, raising an eyebrow. It was getting really hard to breathe now, and he was acting like it was just a normal walk! Of course, football would do that to you.

"Yeah, anyone," I confirm.

He lets out a really deep breath. "I know who she likes, and it's Nate." This time, instead of tripping, I stop and stand there, in complete shock. I really wasn't expecting this, but Shane didn't have any proof. He couldn't be right. He notices that I stopped running and runs back to me.

"Jenny, come on, you need to do this in under twelve minutes, remember?"

"What proof do you have?" I ask. "That she likes Nate."

"Me being me, I'm really good at reading body language from girls. Observing the way she talked to him in school last week, and how she interacted with him at the pool party, she definitely has a crush."

"She did mention liking a freshman with great hair." Still, there were a bunch of freshmen dudes who had awesome hair.

"Okay, in my opinion, Nate's hair sucks, but disregarding that, I still think that she likes him. They're in the same science class, right?"

"Yeah, they are. Wait, hey! Nate's hair so doesn't suck. It's fun to play with, unlike _straight_ hair." I let out a small giggle.

"You _wish_ you could play with my hair. When we become an official couple, you can touch me all you want." He smirks again, and I pretend to gag.

"Okay, so you want to set up Nate and Christie?"

"They have some chemistry, and if Nate starts liking Christie, we'll have a chance to finally be together."

"Who said I wanted you, huh? Maybe I'd rather date Nate. Did that ever cross your mind?" He knew that I was teasing him, but I was still having fun doing that. I slow down, trying to catch my breath.

"Five fifty!" Mr. Wendler shouts. I was starting to lag a bit, and if I wanted to not redo this, I would really have to pick up the pace. I slow to a complete walk when I get to the curve. I'll start running when I get to the straight part.

"Jenny, you have to admit, my plan is pretty good."

"Shane, I made my decision over a week ago," I tell him. This time, it was him that stopped.

"What'd you say?" He was virtually paralyzed, and his blank expression was so incredibly cute.

"I. Already. Made. My. Decision." I say the words extremely slowly and put emphasis on each one to get my point across.

"And you tell me now, why?" I start running, and he quickly catches up.

"I need to make sure that everything's settled before I do anything. Nate being with Christie is total genius. If Nate does fall for Christie, everyone ends up happy."

"Jason and Nicole, Nate and Christie, you and me." I know this will sound confusing to you guys, but I love it when people say 'you and me' or 'you and I.' They put you before themselves, and that shows a sign of selflessness. If they don't realize it, it just could be in their subconscious. Girls, if a guy ever says 'me and you' to you, call them out on it. Notice that the Plain White T's have a song called You and Me. And in We the King's Check Yes Juliet, it also says 'you and me.'

That's why I smiled when Shane said that. That's why I started to run faster. That's why I finished the mile in under ten minutes, a huge accomplishment for me. Shane was showing a hint of selflessness, and just that made me melt. I hug him after I finish the mile.

"Congratulations," he whispers in my hair. I'm still trying to catch my breath.

"Plan Nate and Christie is an official go."

I've already said this before. I'm absolutely positive that Shane's _the one._ Sure, I'm only fourteen and totally naïve. Shane needed me more, and my feelings for him are stronger. They always have been, I just never realized it until now. All we had to do now was get Nate and Christie together.

Crap, that shit sounds really hard.

**A/N - (Dodges tomatoes from Nate lovers.) I'm so sorry guys, but Jenny chose Shane. It's completely official. This story is pretty far from over, though. Remember the hospital scene? The last words of the chapter? She mentioned that he was "the one" and that she wouldn't regret the decision. That was like, a red alert saying, "She's gonna end up with Shane!" My God, who actually caught that and who didn't? I'm definitely writing a sequel, and there's always the chance that things can change.**

**But if you guys love Nate and not Shane, I'm writing another story. It's called Two Worlds Collide and the first chapter's up. It's time for Nate to shine! So yeah, Nate lovers go there. It'll definitely be a Nate/OC. It's another original character who's totally different from Jenny, but their personalities will still be somewhat interesting. **

**And even if you're more of a Shane lover, you might just like the story. Check it out yourself. Sorry this was so short! I just wanted to give this plan an entrance.. any offers as to how Nate will fall for Christie, despite being "heels over head" for Jenny? HELP PLEASE!**


	34. Grey Bear

**A/N - Seems like we can't get past 30 reviews. Oh wellz.. This chapter's given me a hard time. I'm going through some writer's block for LAGOH since I need to somehow get Nate and Christie together. Some people gave pretty nice suggestions. I think I'm gonna use them all somehow.. Well, enjoy!**

**And if you haven't done it yet, vote for your favorite stories on Starsnuffers' or Pyro's CR Awards. Vote for the ones that are unpopular, not the ones with a lot of reviews. I really don't care if this story gets nominated since so many people read it already. It's gotten enough attention.**

"You guys auditioning for the play?" I ask the table as I popped a curly fry into my mouth. Christie just joined us here. The drama club just announced the fall play.

"Psh, fuck no," Shane says. "It's Pride and Prejudice, so not my thing."

"I'm gonna audition for Georgiana. I'm a freshman, so I'll actually have a chance," Christie says.

"Oh, Nate, you should audition for George Wickham. The role doesn't sound half bad," Shane suggests. How did Shane know anything about Pride and Prejudice?

"But wait, I have football practice, and George Wickham's not in the ensemble, he's an actual character."

"You could just go to the auditions on the weekends. Besides, I can convince those play directors do anything," Shane urges. I wonder if this was his plan.

"If any of you guys get the parts, I'll go to every single performance, all four of them, and root for you guys, okay?" I say. I see Nicole discreetly raise an eyebrow at me. Great, now she's getting suspicious, too.

"Aw, that's so sweet of you!" Christie squeals.

"It's not even the first month yet, and my rep's already getting ruined," Nate grumbles.

"Does that mean that you'll audition for Wickham?" Shane was getting eager now.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Nate continued eating his lunch. I guess that conversation already ended.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Okay, what evil plan are you conjuring up?" I whisper to Shane in Geometry when Nate got up to sharpen his pencil. He was having a hard time working it, so it gave Shane and I some time to talk.

"I talked to the drama club, and I got them to reveal something. They wanted people to have more lines, and they wrote a new script. In it, Georgiana and Wickham kiss." He triumphantly smirks as my mouth drops.

"Shane, that's genius!" I couldn't help myself, I just yelled that out.

"Jenny, Shane, is there something going on?" Mr. Edwards asks us. Nate turns away from the sharpener, looking at us like we have two heads.

"Oh, nothing, he's just helping me with our class work," I lie. Mr. Edwards nods and turns back to his computer screen.

"That was a really bad excuse, you know?"

"Shut up, I can't think of things to say on the spot, you know?" I growl. "So, if Nate and Christie are both successful…"

"Our plan will work, he falls for her, you and I will live happily ever after. The end."

"What if they get the script and Nate decides to object? Christie definitely won't, but Nate might." We needed another plan, and quick.

"We need to do something between now and the results for the auditions." Shane puts his chin in his hand, and he starts thinking. "I got it! It'll be like a homecoming repeat, almost. Set up a blind date."

"You've gotta be kidding me. That's the oldest trick in the books," I say.

"No, the oldest trick is the shoelaces one, remember? We really don't have any other choice."

"But how are we going to do it?" I nearly shiver when Shane gets a devious smile on his face. This can't be good, not at all.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"God, I fucking feel so stupid," I mumble. Shane and I were in the kitchen of this Italian restaurant that his parents went to whenever they were in town. Being such loyal customers, the restaurant gave us a lot of perks. Shane just made reservations for two, and I told Nate that I'd see him at the restaurant at seven. Shane told Christie to meet Nate at seven oh five. If they both came at the exact time designated, dinner should pan out well.

"Here, put this in your ear." Shane hands me this weird ear piece. "I clipped a mic under Nate's collar when he wasn't looking. This'll help us hear what's going on." I put the ear piece in my right ear and heard footsteps, then a car slamming.

"Where's Shane's car?" I hear Nate say.

"He went out with some friends," Jason replies. Jason was obviously involved in the plan, too. We planned this out yesterday, and the auditions for the play were earlier today.

"Are you sure he's not going to stomp off extremely angry?" I ask Shane.

"All the waiters and waitresses are aware, and they're gonna stop him if he tries. Trust me, they'll talk, it'll work out." I was still doubtful, but shut up anyways. Jason and Nate's car ride together was silent for awhile.

"Nate, how much to you like Jenny?" Jason asks. I see Shane frown.

"I like her a lot, but not knowing if she'll choose me or Shane is really painful. Maybe it's not worth it in the end. I hope this date will clear things up." Nate let out a loud sigh, and my heart nearly broke for him. If he didn't think that it was worth it, there was a bigger chance that he would actually start talking to Christie. Jason didn't say anything after that, and I could almost sense the awkward silence and tension through the ear piece.

"I'm really sorry," Shane whispers. "We've put you through so much."

"Everything will be fine, Shane. I just know it. I can feel it already. This is all worth it to be with you." Wow, I almost can't believe what I was saying.

"So it's official? We're really boyfriend and girlfriend now?" He sounded really hopeful. My response is a nod. "Our anniversary's October 1st, then. I won't forget it." His face starts getting closer to my own, and my breath stops in my throat. I could feel his breath on my face now, but then the loud slamming of a door breaks the moment. "Shit," he curses.

"Wait, how can we see them? We can only hear him right now." Shane points to a couple monitors above us, and they were cameras situated throughout the restaurant. Security cameras. I see Nate sit down in one of the monitors, and it was a table for two. His expression was extremely nervous. "You really thought of everything, didn't you?"

"When I want something, I go to extremes. Trust me." After three minutes, I see Christie on the monitor in the lobby. She says a name, and a man leads her to Nate's table. He was looking at a menu, so he didn't see Christie sit down in front of him, but I'm sure he heard the chair move. He puts the menu down.

"Hello, J-" His voice gets cut off as he stares at Christie.

"Play along, play along, play along," Shane whispers to himself.

"Hi Nate! This restaurant is so cool. What are you ordering?" Christie picks up her menu and examines it. "The linguini sounds good to me. I guess I'll just order some lemonade then." Nate was still shocked, and Christie bent her head to the side in confusion. "Is something wrong?"

Nate shakes his head and says, "No, nothing's wrong." Both Shane and I let out a huge breath of relief. Nate wasn't questioning her, and all I could do was thank Mother Nature for answering my prayers. I told you guys, she listens to me. Ha, ha. Nate pulls out his cell phone and excuses himself. I hear a door creaking, so I guess he was in the bathroom. Shane's phone starts vibrating.

"Hello?" Shane says.

"You are so fucking dead," Nate threatens.

"Why are you threatening to kill me?" Shane asks.

"I was supposed to meet Jenny here, not Christie. What did you do?!" I pull the out the ear piece. Man, did Nate want to break my ear drums or something? Oh wait, he didn't even know that I was listening.

"Dude, just play along, alright? Jenny got sick and she sent Christie in her place. She didn't want to disappoint you." Wow, that was just like me. I wouldn't cancel like that. "But don't mention that to Christie. We wouldn't want her feeling bad, right?"

Nate let out another heavy sigh. "You owe me for this, you know that? And if Jenny shows up to school tomorrow healthy, you're dead. DEAD!" I cringe after Nate hangs up. He walks back to the table, and he and Christie order their food.

"Shane, I hope that you're right about this."

"Jelly, I'm always right. Remember that."

"Man, you're already calling me pet names. Jelly, though?" I roll my eyes.

"I like jelly! Peanut butter just isn't complete without it. It goes with your name, too."

"I'll just call you Grey Bear then."

"That name's totally retarded, though," he says.

"Yeah, that's kind of my whole point, you know."

"Whatever, Jelly."

"Grey Bear, let's just listen to the show." I return my attention back to Nate and Christie.

"We're changing my name, okay? I hate Grey Bear."

"Shush, I want to hear what Nate and Christie say to each other!"

He rolls his eyes and we both look at the monitor.

**A/N - Sorry that it was all short. Any suggestions for Shane's pet name? Do you like Jenny's? That's actually one of my nicknames.. but it's Jelly-Tart. Do you guys like Grey Bear? I was in a care bear mood.. Review and the update will come more quickly than you can imagine.. I think.**


	35. Wait For You

**A/N - I have a really good reason as to why this chapter's pretty late. My mom passed out the other night, and last night, we went to the hospital to make sure she was okay. They did a bunch of tests on her, this heart screening, a hundred questions, yeah. It took nearly six hours to get it over and done with. I went to bed at 1 am last night, and I don't have school today because of a Jewish holiday. I'm looking forward to the Philadelphia zoo this week.**

"Jenny, that's your fifth bread stick tonight," Shane reminds me. Dinner between Nate and Christie was going pretty well, and they were having small talk. Still, that didn't make my stress any less worse.

"I eat when I'm nervous, alright?" A kitchen helper hands me another bread stick, and I thank him for it. I bite into my sixth bread stick and continue listening, or spying, on those two hopefully soon-to-be lovebirds.

"So, the auditions are tomorrow," Christie says.

"Yeah, I guess it'd be cool to do a play. I'm not a good actor, though." Nate sighs.

"You'll definitely make it. It's me that I'm not sure about." Christie giggles again. She'd been doing that a lot tonight.

"The drama club will love you, I'm positive about it."

"So, if we do get the parts, no matter what, let's not back out, okay?" Christie says.

"Okay, I promise to not back out, just for you." Nate laughs.

"Nate, I never properly thanked you. I mean, coming to a new school's pretty rough, and you were my first friend. You got me acquainted, and you talked to me. So yeah, thank you for that."

Nate didn't speak for a couple seconds, and I was getting worried. "You're welcome. Uh, I mean, well, anything to help a friend." I can tell that he was still reluctant to be on the date, but at least they were starting to warm up a bit. I pull out the ear piece and look away from the monitors.

"Shane, maybe we shouldn't spy on them anymore."

"What? Why? Wasn't the whole point of this to set them up?" He pulls out his ear piece, too.

"Yeah, it was, but I feel so intrusive. Look, Nate doesn't think that the fight's worth it, and Christie already likes him. If it's meant to happen, they'll do it on their own, not with us getting involved."

"But what if it doesn't work out, and Nate gets hurt?"

I breathe in a deep breath. "We can just hope that he'll learn to accept our relationship. That's the only thing we should really do."

"I still think that we should continue setting them up. If we don't, it could end disastrously."

"Shane, listen to me. How do you think Nate would feel if I push him away so much as to set him up with a girl that he's just met? It's worse than rejection. If we just stay out of their way, everything will work out better," I try to reason.

"What if he doesn't fall for her, then what? We can't just let this take its 'natural course' since that's definitely not going to happen. We have to intervene, or else it won't work out." Shane ran his hands through his hair, obviously exasperated. "Man, we're not even an hour into our relationship, and we're already fighting."

"I find that pretty funny, actually." I start giggling a bit. "Arguing with you is pretty fun."

"Great, so now it's 'fun' to argue with me." He rolls his eyes. "I'm gonna go back listening to them, okay?" He puts the ear piece back in and I grudgingly do the same thing. Great, now Nate and Christie were laughing at something.

"Jenny poured water ice on Shane's hair after he dumped the water on her shirt?! That's hilarious!" Christie exclaims.

"And get this; she was wearing one of those tight white tanks, and her pink bra was showing through it." Both of them continue laughing hysterically. "Even our Geometry teacher blushed when he saw her afterwards," Nate adds in.

"Jenny and Shane really were made for each other." Christie dreamily sighs. I finally muster enough courage to look up at the monitors, and Nate wasn't looking so well.

"Christie, why'd you have to be so stupid and say that?! You know he likes me, at least don't come on so strong!" Some of the cooks turn and stare at me, and I whisper, "Sorry."

"Yeah, I guess they are," Nate mumbles.

"Nate? What's wrong?" Christie asks. The conversation just turned awkward.

"I'm sorry, Christie, but I'm not feeling so good. Could we end this date early?" I see her frown, but she nods her head anyways. "Thanks for being so understanding." Nate asks for the check, and pays for it at the front. Outside, I could sense the awkward silence.

"Christie, where's your ride?" Nate asks.

"I walked here since I live four blocks away."

"To make up for the crappy night, I guess that I'll walk you home."

I couldn't take it anymore. The guilt of spying on him, I mean. I took out the ear piece for good and give it back to Shane. "Let's leave them alone," I say. Shane nods and puts the two ear pieces away in his pocket.

"Let's get you home now." We both walk to his car that was parked in the back of the restaurant.

"I wonder what's going on with Nate and Christie," I say as we were nearing my house. The restaurant was only a five minute drive from my house.

"The answer lies in my pocket, or the ear pieces, whatever. You're the one that still refuses to listen."

"It's not that easy to resist spying on them, but I'm not gonna do it since I have a conscience. He probably walked her home, they said their awkward goodbyes, and he got Jason to drive him home afterwards. Now, it's the awkward goodbyes part that I'm really interested in," I say. We just arrived at my house. I unbuckle my seat belt and open the car door.

"Okay, we're officially going steady, and I haven't even kissed you yet! Do you see anything wrong with that?" he asks.

"No, not really. 'Night, Shane!" I slam his door and skip up my driveway. Man, it's really fun messing with him. I reach my door, but his car was still there. I cross my arms and glare at him through the glass, and he finally drives off. I immediately get ready for bed, and within fifteen minutes, I'm trying to sleep. I get up when I hear a knocking on my window. Oh boy, it was Nate. After helping him in and closing the window and locking my door, I start questioning him.

"This is the third time that you've climbed up that trellis into my room. What the heck is up this time?" I ask. He pulls out a tiny mic.

"Explain why I found this thing under my shirt collar." Oh shit….

"I have absolutely no idea," I say. I'm getting better at lying, so hopefully it's believable.

"You don't look sick to me, either. Jenny, I think I know what's going on."

"No, you don't," I squeak out. Literally, I squeaked it. Just like a liar would.

"Yes, I do. You've already made your decision. You've already chosen Shane over me, haven't you?" My eyes get wider. "I just want to know why you did it. I'm not mad at you. Yes, I'm deeply hurt, but if you have a good explanation, I'll understand."

"Nate, Shane needs me more. It took me a long time to figure it out, but my feelings for him have always been strong. You scare me sometimes with your angry outbursts. Despite Shane's reputation, he's really a confused, innocent guy. I'm sorry, I really am."

Instead of replying, he walks over and wraps his arms around my waist and buries his head in my shoulder. And that's when he started crying.

"Why, Jenny?" he chokes out through his sobs. "Why couldn't it be me?" I start crying, too. I couldn't stand it anymore. "Why can't we be more than just friends? Why?"

"I'm so sorry. Please forgive me." I try rubbing his back a bit, to try and make him feel better, but it wasn't working.

"Would you love me if I didn't scare you? Would you love me if Shane never existed?" he asks me about ten minutes later. My shirt was completely soaked, but I didn't care. I was crying more now.

"Yes, I would love you. I would love you so much. But Shane does exist, so I can't." I sit down on my bed and pulled my knees up so that my face would be resting on them.

"I'll wait for you, Jenny. When you get sick and tired of Shane, I'll be there. I know that you'll come running back to me one day. I just know it." I quickly shake my head.

"No, you have to move on. You need to leave your feelings for me behind."

"You don't know how hard that is, though. In just four short weeks, I've fallen for you so hard. I can't destroy my feelings that easily. No matter what, I'll still be waiting for you. I know that I'll have you someday. We're still young, so we have plenty of time." He sits down next to me and wraps his arm around my shoulder. This time around, it's extremely comforting.

"I don't know what the future holds, but right now, I'm with Shane." My tears just stopped, but I still felt so horrible.

"Until I find a girl as perfect as you, I'll always be waiting. You got that?" he asks. I numbly nod my head. He kisses my forehead before opening up my window and climbing down. I get up and close it after just sitting there for five minutes.

"Christie, I hope you're better than me. But that's not hard since I'm an evil person with no heart," I say to the air. I climb back into my bed and bury my head into one of the small pillows.

_False hope is what hurts the most._

**I nearly cried, just to let you guys know. My throat's still tight.**


	36. Auditions

**A/N - To make this short, I'm really sorry for the late update. The Philadelphia Zoo and the Philadelphia Free Library field trips really zonked my brain. I had no idea where to continue this story after the last chapter. I was so busy reading this awesome book yesterday. Tell me in the review if you want to know what it is. If you like this story, you might just like that book. **

**Go to Starsnuffers' profile to vote for your favorites in everything! You don't have to vote for me. You should only vote if you feel that I deserve it. I got nominated in two categories.**

"Ow. Ow. Ow." The bruise on my cheek was starting to fade away, but it still hurt when I ever applied the cover-up foundation. I also snuck some of my mom's eyeliner and purple eye shadows since my eyes were still a little bit puffy from crying last night. Nate. He said that he'd wait for me, that he was sure that Shane and I wouldn't last. I needed to prove him wrong and that it would last. He had to somehow accept the relationship and move on.

I picked up my mango flavored lip gloss that I randomly bought from Victoria's Secret once. Seriously, I was at the mall with Nicole and we went into Victoria's Secret. That's where I got my slutty bras and underwear. Of course, nobody but Nicole knew about that. I never wore that lingerie either. I saw the lip gloss, smelled it, and chucked it on the counter. And here it was being used for the first time in two months. If I was putting on a lot of make-up today, might as well do lip gloss, right?

I threw on my regular outfit of a world peace t-shirt and dark slightly flared jeans. After tying my graffiti Chucks and slinging my homework heavy backpack on my shoulder, I open the door and walk down my driveway. I climb into Shane's car, but before I could even put on the seatbelt, he stops me. "Don't tell me you're going to give me that stupid seatbelt lecture again," I whine.

"Nope, I'm still waiting for that kiss. Any day now.. I'm just a guy sitting here, wishing that his gorgeous girlfriend would kiss him for the first time. I haven't had any sexual contact in a month! Jenny, you can't leave me hanging!" Man, this rant was getting extremely funny. I start hysterically laughing.

"Hey, that's not funny!"

"Yeah, it's really funny. Man, since when did Shane Grey have to beg a girl to kiss him? I should've taped that," I say.

"Jenny, what's with your face today?" he asks.

"Is it really that bad?" I was starting to get self conscious.

"No, you look really beautiful." I don't think that I've ever even heard Shane compliment girls using that word. It was always 'hot' or 'cute' or 'sexy.'

"Oh, uh, thanks." My fingers start twitching a bit.

I feel his fingers touch the side of my face as he places a stray strand of hair back behind my ear. Next thing I know, he's gently kissing me, and I'm completely frozen. He pulls away a couple seconds into my paralyzed state. "Is everything alright?" he asks.

Instead of saying anything, I roughly pull Shane's head down to my level because of our height difference and kiss him with all the energy I could muster. I was inexperienced and tired, so it really wasn't much. After his two seconds of shock, he starts kissing me back. I tangle my fingers into his long and soft hair. The pain from having to choose, from the experience with Nate last night, to everything that had happened in the last month was poured into that kiss. It got to the point where it almost physically hurt. I pull away when I felt Shane's car moving, but he wasn't driving. Somehow, I ended up straddling Shane and was in his lap, and the gear shift was in Reverse. Before the car could get to the steep part of my street, I put it back in Park.

"Sorry for messing up your hair," I apologize. His perfect hair was now sticking up in random directions. I try flattening it, but it only helped a little bit.

"I could say the same to you," he replies. I get off of him and look in one of the car's mirrors. My hair was bad, but it would be pretty easy to fix. All I had to do was flip it down and shake it. "I love your lip gloss. You should wear it more often."

"Got it at Victoria's Secret a couple months back," I say, straightening out my shirt. I hadn't even realized that the shirt rode up that much.

"You actually went in there?" he asked, shocked.

"All girls go in there at some point or another." He starts driving to school.

"Did you buy any hot lingerie?"

"You're such a perv! Gosh. No, I didn't, okay?"

"I'm your boyfriend. I'm allowed to ask you that. You have such a hot body but you won't show it off. It's such a shame."

"You should've been there for that skit in History then. It was one hot maid costume. In fact, I should wear it for Halloween." I knew that I was taunting him, and it was fun.

"A hot maid costume?" he asks. "Is it short and skimpy?"

"Yup. Lacy, too," I add.

"I really can't wait for Halloween now. I'm thinking of only doing small parties after games, but a huge costume party for Halloween. We could even have a costume contest for most original idea! I'll dress up as a rich guy."

"Wow, me as a maid, you as the guy that pays me for my services. That's a pretty good idea, actually." Wait a minute..

"That pays you for your 'services', huh?" He starts smirking.

"That just totally came out wrong. I meant cleaning services, dickwad."

"Yup, I'm sure that's what you totally meant."

"But I really did mean that!" I say.

"And I really believe you," he taunts. "So when can we tell other people about our relationship?"

"We can't," I protest. "The jealous girls were bad enough, but when I'm officially dating you, it'll get worse. We should wait a couple weeks at least."

"So no kissing you in school?" I shake my head. "How about hugging?"

"I guess that's fine. It's a friendly gesture. The hugs can't last more than three seconds, though."

"I think that we should try ignoring each other in gym. If we don't, I might just accidentally spill the secret." That was actually a good idea.

"Shane, I love your thinking. See you in class soon, bye!" I open the door and get out, but Shane reaches for my other hand and kisses it. I glare at him and he mouths 'Sorry.'

When I finally sit down next to Nate in homeroom, he tells me, "I'm really sorry about last night. I didn't mean to sound so harsh. It's just so hard to accept."

"What?" I ask, dumbfounded.

"I was a jerk, Jenny. I should've known the outcome all along. He always treated you better and never got angry. You're so forgiving that you saw past his reputation and bad ways. You saw through my gentle nature and knew the real me. The one who hurts the people that he loves."

"Nate, you truly are an incredibly nice person. Nobody could ever possibly dislike you. I would never be able to dislike you, either. Those miniscule problems of yours can be easily fixed. They're nothing to worry about," I assure him.

"I know that you still have that bruise. I was the one that gave it to you. You're just covering it up with make-up."

"It's only temporary, Nate. Bruises always go away. They never leave scars. Can we leave all of that behind, please?" I beg.

"On one condition," he says. I nod for him to continue. "Come audition for Pride and Prejudice. You don't have to specify any roles that you want. Just come read some lines. Please."

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Jenny, you're auditioning, too?" Christie asks me when I sit down next to her in the auditorium. It's where the auditions were being held.

"I got forced into it. I suck at acting, so I'm definitely not getting a role except for the ensemble. Hopefully you get Georgiana." I really did want her to do exceptionally well.

"I heard that you did an awesome job with Nate in that History skit, though."

"I'm not sure if that actually relates to this, but eh. Thanks, though," I say.

The auditions weren't exactly reading lines from the script. You were supposed to improvise the best love declaration scene with a random person who was also auditioning. You had to atempt it in old English, too. Some were amazing. Some made me embarrassed to just watch. That one girl who actually made out with the guy nearly made me double over in laughter. Christie auditioned with a sophomore, and I was the person that clapped the loudest after she finished. Her words sounded so pure, so innocent. Then it came my turn, and my partner just had to be Nate. Really, why?

"Let's base it on our current situation," he whispers in my ear before we were going to perform.

"Okay, ready, go!" the drama teacher yelled through her blow horn.

Nate cups my face in his hand and says, "Jenny, for the past several weeks, you have captivated me. Your eyes are like chocolate. Your voice like honey. Your innocence so tempting."

"Nate, but I'm already bound to somebody else. I need to be faithful to him," I say.

"I'll rip those heavy chains from you. I'll dispose of his worthless soul and you'll finally be mine. I know that you love me just as much as I love you." I break away from his hold. This was acting after all.

"I do, Nate, I really do. I'm not sure if I have the courage."

"Our love will get us through everything. We'll take you away from your retched boyfriend. You and I could finally be together. I love you more than I love life itself. I need you to keep me living."

"I-I love you, too," I say, tears brimming over my eyes. What he said was so true, but I was only acting. I loved him like he was my closest friend. I didn't love him like that.

He lightly brushes his lips over mine. They barely even touched, but I still shivered from it. He kisses my tears away, too. Then he hugs me, and the entire auditorium starts the applause.

"Very well done!" the drama director says through her blow horn.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I skim over the cast list for Pride and Prejudice. It was up by the next day. Some seniors and juniors got all the lead roles. I start jumping up and down when Nate got George Wickham. I frown when Christie was the substitute for Georgiana. I nearly have a heart attack when I see;

_Georgiana Darcy …… Jenny Huynh_

I really felt like Bella in Eclipse right then.

_Shit._

**A/N - Did everyone like this? Please review and tell me! I hope that when Jenny and Shane kissed, it wasn't so bad.. Remember, I've never kissed a single guy before. That's embarrassing to admit.. **


	37. Desperate Measures

**Please promote the new official camp rock awards. I'm talking as in the OFFICIAL, official, official, times a gazillion, m'kay? These are the awards that are given out on a semi-annual basis. Nominations end on June 5th, 2009. The link is on my profile. Really, I'm asking everyone nicely to promote these awards since not a lot of people know about them yet. And it's not just one person running it, too. It's an entire committee of authors. Just spread the word. Thanks, love you all!**

"Mrs. Gallagher, is there any possible way for me to get another role?" I ask the drama director.

"I'm sorry, but the results are final, Jenny," she says.

"No, I mean, can you make my understudy Christie play my part?"

"There was a reason why I cast you and Nate your roles. You two have the most amazing chemistry that I've ever seen." She goes into her office and goes through a bunch of papers. She hands me one sheet and I go over it. It was the part with my kiss with Nate. _Wickham passionately kisses Georgiana._

"I have to 'passionately' kiss him?" My stomach tightens.

"You're a high school student. There shouldn't be any reason why you couldn't do it. From what I've heard, some girls would die to be in your shoes."

"I know they would, but still. I just want to know if there's any way that I could get Christie to play my part."

"Unless you're injured or become ill, you're stuck with the part."

I think that gives me an idea…

**XoLAGOHxO**

Surprisingly, Shane took it pretty well. He wasn't that mad that I was cast as Georgiana. I told him that I wanted to be in the ensemble to keep an eye on Nate and Christie to see how their progress would be going. He totally bought it, and I swore that I wouldn't lie to him like that again. That lie was purely for an emergency. All Christie did was give me encouragement.

"_Oh, you totally deserved that role. You and Nate amazing together."_

She told me that and a bunch of other things similar to it. The disappointment was evident through her eyes but I could still tell that the encouragement was genuine. She wanted that role so bad and I took it from her. I can't just let Nate win that easily.

All weekend I tried coming up with plans to get me out of the situation. Only one came to mind that would actually work. Carrying out the plan would be hard for me to do. I've never done or experienced anything like this before.

And now you can find me late for my lunch period. Standing alone on the stairs that lead to the cafeteria. I start to second guess the idea. Maybe it's a little bit too irrational. I can come up with something less controversial. I force the thoughts out of my mind. I feel like I have to do it. To make sure that Nate and Christie end up together. To make sure that I could be with Shane without having to worry about another person having feelings towards me.

I walk up the steps to the second floor, my left hand touching the railing. This would be the last time that I'd use it like this in the coming weeks. I take in several deep breaths at the top. To get to the first floor, there were two flights of stairs. I would need both to successfully carry out this plan. I walk backwards until my back hit the double doors. Then I run for it.

I dash down the stairs by two steps, three steps, then jump the last six. Using the building momentum, I turn right and jump down the final flight. I stick my left arm in front of me to break the incoming fall. _Please let it be my left wrist. Please let it be my left wrist.._

Then I hear the crunching of my left wrist, and I feel the satisfaction of successfully carrying out my plan. That feeling goes away only to be replaced by searing pain. I lose all of the energy to stand up and go get help. Instead, I just lay there, staring at the injured limb. I couldn't really see it, but I knew that a cluster of bones had somehow been broken pretty badly in there.

I hear feet going down the steps and a person rushing to my side. It was Brad. For once, instead of seeing a smirk on his face, he was frowning and actually looked concerned. He picks me up then carries me to the nurse's office.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Hello, Jenny. My name is Dr. Goldstein." The nurse had called my mom who immediately drove over to the school. So now I was sitting in one of the rooms in the radiology department about to see the results from my x-ray. My mom shakes hands with the young doctor and I shake his hand, too. My left arm was wrapped in gauze.

"Okay, so do you both see this part right here?" He points to the cluster of bones that connected my wrist to my hand ligaments.

"Is it supposed to look all weird like that?" I ask. Some of the several small bones were spread apart. It was like an incomplete jigsaw puzzle.

"No, it's supposed to fit nicely together like a puzzle. Unfortunately, Jenny, you've damaged your carpal bones."

"Is that worse than breaking your wrist?" my mom asks.

"I'm sorry to say this, but your daughter needs to go into surgery right away. We can't risk anymore damage."

"Surgery? What'll it consist of?" I ask.

"We're going to place your carpal bones back where they belong and put a thin metal plate on top of it. It's going to stay in your hand, but you won't be able to tell the difference."

"When's the surgery going to begin?" My empty stomach was about to regurgitate acid.

"When's the last time that you ate?"

"Last night," I say. My mom glares at me but I ignore it.

"Since today's not a busy day, the surgery can begin right away. A nurse will lead you to an operating room shortly." He left after that. I can almost feel the blood draining from my face.

"Mommy, I'm scared," I say.

"Honey, it's alright. You're not going to die," she replies.

"I know, but this is the first time that I've broken a bone. And now I'm getting a surgery and a plate inserted in my hand."

"It'll be over before you know it."

Sorry, you readers, but I would really like to skip the operating scene. Let's say that there were a lot of cutting instruments and that there were bright lights above me. That's all that I remember, and about three surgeons standing around me. I was soon knocked out by the anesthetic.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I groggily wake up in a different room. I'm still on the same stretcher, but this wasn't an operating room. My hand hurt a bit, but it was mainly numb. I look down and see a blue cast that nearly reached my elbow. It already had Nicole's signature on it. I try moving my left fingers, but it's strained. I look to my right and see Nicole sitting there. Her eyes were puffy and red.

"You've finally woken up. God, you had everybody so scared!" she yells. "You're hurting yourself so much these days. It's like this hospital's your second home."

"Ha, ha," I hoarsely laugh. "I'm alright now. There's just this metal plate in my left hand and this clunky cast. Congratulations, you're the first person to sign it."

"Thanks, but what did you do to mess up your carpal bones?"

"I fell down the stairs. I was talking to my Spanish teacher about something and got held back. I rushed down the steps and fell down the last flight. The rest is self explanatory." She manages to laugh a bit.

"Wow. You're the buzz of the entire school once again. Nothing out of the ordinary," she says.

"Of course people talk about my injury. At least they didn't find out about the concussion."

"Yeah, that's good. Play rehearsals were after school. Nate actually made the first couple minutes. He didn't really do much with Christie," Nicole informs me.

"Oh, that's cool. Man, my entire left arm is like, numb."

"I'm really glad to not be you, just so you know."

"Hey, where's the guys?" I ask.

"Your mom didn't let them see you. She wants you to rest and apparently only trusts me to not make you distraught," she explains. We both laugh a bit.

"Of course she'd trust you to not make me go nuts. We've only known each other since first grade," I sarcastically say.

"Man, even after your first broken bone and surgery, you manage to be sarcastic."

"Yeah, I'm just that awesome!" I yell.

"Damn right, bitch!" She punches my right shoulder lightly. "We'll always be there for each other."

"Always," I promise.

**A/N - Sorry if this was **too** short for you guys, or too sudden. I gave this idea a lot of thought. Remember, the official CR awards committee. **


	38. Ratted Out

**A/N - I haven't updated in what feels like forever!! That new story Gang Wars totally knocked me off, then the new chapter for TWC. Also, my weekend was really busy and I actually did stuff. I was gone from my house like, the entire day. One more thing; I just got some fake gel nails, so it's like, really hard to type. But they're so cute!! Eep! Man, I say the word "like" too much. But I don't generally talk like that.. I used to live in the ghetto, so ehh.**

I must really love school since I'm getting ready for it right now. I just had the surgery yesterday, and I was going to school today. My hand still hurt like a bitch, but the painkillers helped it a bit. I really don't want to see how people are going to react, especially Shane. Everybody should believe that I tripped down the steps. I mean, I am kind of accident prone, right? My mom had disconnected the phone cable last night due to fear of other people calling to ask how I was. She also shut off my internet so I wouldn't be able to go on Facebook or MySpace. Her excuse was that I needed my rest and Nicole could explain to everyone for me. All of that lack of communication would explain why Shane seemed a bit pissed right now.

"Okay, so I hear that my girlfriend fell down the stairs and broke her wrist, yet I couldn't even call her or talk to her in any way at all. Care to explain?" he asks me first thing.

"Man, you don't even ask me how I'm doing."

"Okay, how are you doing? Does it still hurt?"

"I'm doing fine, thank you very much. It only hurts a little bit now," I sarcastically say.

"Look, I was just worried, okay? When I heard from Nicole that you were in the hospital, I nearly had a heart attack. You always end up getting hurt somehow. At least this time, it's not Nate's fault or mine. From now on, you better not run down the stairs."

"Geez, you're starting to sound like my parents or something." I felt a bit guilty since the reason why I got hurt had a lot to do with him and Nate.

"Just try to not hurt yourself anymore. Good thing it was only your wrist."

"Actually, I totally messed up my carpal bones and had surgery. Now there's this metal plate in my hand."

"What!?" He slams on the brakes and I get a bit nauseous. The cars behind us start honking. After a couple seconds, he finally starts driving again. "What did you say about surgery?"

"I'm totally fine now, so don't worry. All I had was a small surgery to fix those bones and insert a plate," I nonchalantly say.

"I didn't think that it was that serious! I just thought that you fractured your wrist or something."

"It's not that serious. I'm fine now, and my doctor said that it'd be healed in a month or so. I can't remove the plate, though." I let out a small sigh.

"So when you die and decompose, there'd be some metal thing on your hand?" he asks.

"Man, you're such a pessimist." I groan.

"Uh, what does that mean?" His curiosity was actually genuine.

"Oh. My. Fucking. God." I felt like hitting my head on something.

"What? It's not my fault that I'm unbelievably stupid."

"It means that you're negative. Man, are you in Remedial English?" I ask.

"Yes, and are you in Honors English?" he asks.

"Yeah, I am. My goodness. You're two years older than me, yet I'm still smarter than you. " I groan again.

"You're so mean," he says.

"Yet I'm still amazingly awesome," I smugly reply.

"What a totally arrogant oxymoron." Shane rolls his eyes.

"My God, that actually sounded smart!"

"Ha, I learned what oxymoron meant last week."

"I learned when I was a sixth grader…"

"You're starting to make me feel bad!"

"Shane, you're sixteen, not five," I point out.

"Oh yeah, five year olds can't drive."

"You're such a ditz." I laugh a bit.

"But I'm your ditz, right?"

"Sure, whatever. I guess I'll see you in Geometry then." We'd already arrived at the school. I'd be missing PE for the next month thanks to my new injury. Until I'm physically able to participate, I have Study Hall. I give him a quick peck on the cheek and get out of his car. I'm almost late to homeroom since it's pretty hard getting books out of your locker with only one useful hand. I could use my cast to help me carry my books, though.

"Hey Nate," I warmly greet as I sit down next to him.

"Nice cast," he mumbles.

"Yeah, blue's my favorite color. I got it while I was still knocked out."

"It's funny how you got yourself injured right after the results of the auditions." He raises an eyebrow at me.

"I was talking to my Spanish teacher about conjugating 'IR' verbs and was late to lunch," I say.

"Those kinds of verbs are easy. Why would you need to ask her about that?"

"I don't really pay attention in Spanish. It doesn't hurt to ask, does it?"

"I guess not," he mutters. "Looks like I'm kissing Christie for the play."

"What's so bad about that?" I ask with genuine curiosity. Christie wasn't bad at all.

"She's not you. That's why it stinks."

I pat his shoulder with my right hand. "Don't worry, everything will be alright," I reassure him.

It soon came time for homeroom to end. I notice Nate walking towards the main office instead of the direction he usually took to get to his next class, whatever that was.

"Nate, isn't your class that way?" I ask. I point behind me.

"I'm taking a different route today," he says and continues walking.

**XoLAGOHxO**

The phone rings in the middle of my Spanish quiz. My teacher answers it and I put my pencil down when I hear my name. She beckons me over and tells me that I'm needed in Mr. McFall's office. I give her a questioning look and she assures me that I'm not in trouble. I hesitantly get my agenda and she signs it. I begin the long walk to the main office. Why was I needed in the office? I don't get it at all.

When I sit down in front of Mr. McFall, he turns on his laptop. "Jenny, how'd you get that cast?" he asks.

"I was rushing back from Spanish class and slipped down the steps. I really need to work on my balance skills," I say. For added effect, I give a low chuckle.

"So you accidentally fell down, right?" He crosses his arms and leans back in his big chair.

"Of course it was an accident. I wouldn't intentionally injure myself."

"Then please explain this." He turns around his laptop and plays a video. In the video, I was standing between the two flights that separated the two floors. My face looked really hesitant and worried. I let out a small gasp when I see myself slowly climb up the steps and my back hit the door.

And then I'm running down the steps at an incredibly fast rate. When it got to the part where I flew down the steps, it was like everything was in slow motion. How did Mr. McFall even realize what happened? What made him review the video footage on that staircase? How could I be so stupid? Of course there'd be security cameras! That's how they caught Angela and Morgan when they burned down my locker. I wince when my body falls to the floor in a seemingly painful heap.

Mr. McFall closes his laptop and says in a stern voice, "Jenny, that didn't look like an accident."

"Uh.." I stammer.

"I've already made the calls. Until your new psychologist thinks that you're emotionally stable, you are indefinitely suspended from this school."

**A/N - Credit goes to prettygal6 for that idea. You're freakishly awesome!**


	39. I Care About You

**A/N - I don't want to put an author's note at the end.. So sorry for this late update! It's just that school's really taking a toll on me, and I'm failing some classes… I have to try and get that grade back up. This chapter is a bit longer than other ones, and I hope you guys like it. If you review more, I might just have more determination to update!**

**Make sure to critique anything you didn't like, tell me what you did like, or just tell me your thoughts about this in general. I typed this up while watching my little brother play Halo 3. Funny, eh?**

**CONGRATULATIONS TO SmILe.0x FOR BEING MY 700****TH**** REVIEWER! Irene, you're awesome!**

It takes a couple seconds for everything to register in my head. The reason why Nate took a different route to class was to rat me out. He was suspicious right when he heard I got injured. How could I even be suspended at all? Were there any rules that said that I could be suspended? I look down at what was in my hand. Perfect.

"Mr. McFall, all the rules from the school are in my agenda," I say. I open up to the couple pages with rules and flip to the part about what could get you suspended. "There are no rules that say that I could get suspended just because I fell down the stairs."

He grabs the agenda from my hand and quickly scans over it. After about a minute, he clears his throat and says, "No, there aren't any rules about that in here. Still, I'm the principal and whatever I say goes. And I say that you are suspended because you need to see a psychiatrist."

"Our school has a counselor for a reason, Mr. McFall. I did not injure myself because of stupid reasons. It was pure manipulation from a certain student that snitched on me." I might've seemed calm on the outside, but on the inside, my anger was starting to boil. I swear, when I get my hands on Nate, there will be hell to pay. What I don't get is why he'd snitch on me. I mean, didn't he want me around?

"Oh, and how did that 'certain student' get you to jump down the stairs?" he crudely asks.

"He manipulated me into doing something that I didn't want to be a part of, and the only way I could get out was by injury. Besides, my hand will heal in about a month."

"You believe that that excuse would make me rethink sending you to a hospital for the suicidal?"

"Pissed off principal say what?"

"The original plan was to get you into one of those hospitals for girls who have eating disorders and cut themselves or have emotional issues."

"Hey, you can't do that without contacting my guardians."

"Uh, I mean…"

"You didn't contact my parents yet, did you?" Oh, this was the perfect chance to get out of this.

"What would make you think that?"

"You just kinda stuttered. If you make plans for me to go to some psych ward without my parents' permission, I'm pretty sure I could sue you for that. And if I can't do that, I really could destroy Green Oak's reputation."

"What makes you think you could do that?!"

"Sending me off to some place without my parent's knowing before you made those calls can have some serious consequences. You could try saying that it was your immediate reaction to do that, but you don't have that authority over me. People would think that you're some sort of dictator. Would that make other people want to move to our 'amazing and safe' borough of Green Oak? I think not." I cross my arms over my chest in triumph.

"What are you trying to say?" I could already see the sweat starting to drip down his face.

"Let's just forget about that suspension and that insane hospital. I can make a deal with you, and nobody else would find out."

"No, you need some serious help." Watching the principal hyperventilate is pretty fun.

"Sure, you have evidence of what I did, but you didn't have any authority to contact that hospital before my legal guardians knew about it. How about I just see our school counselor everyday for say, a couple weeks, and I won't purposely injure myself again."

"Well…."

"The news station is just a phone call away. Really, you don't want Green Oak in the news for such a bad reason, right? Everybody would think that Mr. McFall's a controlling and manipulative person."

"I still don't see what fault I have in any of this."

"You had no right to set me up for that hospital. My parents don't have a single clue about that. You are not my legal guardian. Last time I checked, you can't do that."

I wait as Mr. McFall tries coming up with a solution. After about a minute, he says, "You'll be seeing the counselor everyday during study hall until your cast is off."

"Can I get back to Spanish class now?"

"Yeah, go ahead." He waves me off and I happily skip out the door. Really, that man should've thought about the consequences before he did that. Parents are always the first to know, not some strange hospital.

I finish my Spanish test just as the bell rings for lunch. Great, my next period has Nate in it. I decide to only get a turkey sandwich for lunch since I couldn't carry so much. You can only do so much with one hand. It takes me an even longer time to get the money out of my deep pockets, but nobody in the line complained. Nate and Shane were laughing about something when I sit down across from them. I smile at them like nothing had happened, but the expression on Nate's face was pure horror.

"Hey guys," I casually greet them.

"How's your arm?" Christie asks.

"The painkillers are starting to wear off, but it's pretty good so far."

"Chink, you need to eat more," Nicole says.

"My appetite got smaller. I'm not that hungry today."

"Jenny, can I speak to you in private?" Nate asks. "Please."

"How about later? I wanna finish my sandwich first."

"It's pretty urgent."

"Urgent enough for me to have to wait to eat this sandwich?"

"Yeah, it's that urgent."

"How about after the first bite?"

"Nate, just let her eat," Shane says. "She had a surgery yesterday, so just give her a break."

"She was begging for it," Nate mumbles under his breath. I barely caught that, but I swear, that's what he said.

"What was that?" Shane asks.

"Nothing," Nate replies. "Nothing at all."

Nicole and Christie give each other strange looks and I start eating my sandwich. Lunch was finally over and I walk as fast as I can out of the doors. I have to stay away from Nate. Sure, I have a couple more classes with him, but if I can avoid him between periods, I should be fine. I feel somebody grip my right arm and I turn around to see who it was.

"Not so fast there," Nate says.

"If we don't hurry up, we'll be late to Geometry," I remind him.

"Why are you still in this school?"

"I can sense Mr. Edwards marking us absent."

"Why are you still here?" he growls in my ear.

"Why did you do that?"

"Do you mean why I snitched on you?"

"You just gave in so easily," I say, shocked at how easy it was for him to confess.

"Jenny, think. What would make me want to get you out of this school?"

"To separate me from Shane?" I finally realize.

"Yeah. I knew you were smart."

"You mean you planned this all out? You knew that I'd get the part and what I would do to get out of it? You knew what Mr. McFall would do? You strategically planned everything out, didn't you?"

"Let's not think about it like that."

"You're evil."

"No, I'm not evil. I just do anything to get what I want."

"And you think that getting me into some psychiatric hospital would make me like you?"

"Well, it'd get Shane to break up with you, and that's a nice start."

"Shane wouldn't do that. He'd help me try to get through it."

"You really think he'd do that for you? If word spreads about what you did, it would ruin his reputation. Knowing Shane, what does he care about more; you or his rep?"

"I don't believe that he cares that much about his reputation anymore."

"Jenny, I've known Shane my entire life. I should know what and who he cares about."

"But he's changed!" I yell. "He's different. He's not the same anymore."

"Do you really believe that? Think about it. A person doesn't change that much that fast."

"Yes, I believe it. I believe that he's changed."

"Don't come running to me when he breaks your poor little heart."

Nate lets go of my arm then starts walking to our next class; Geometry. Instead of following him, I wait until the bell rings. He was so horrible. He did all of that just to try to get Shane and I separated. He believes that Shane hasn't changed for the better. Whatever. I believe that, and nothing is going to convince me otherwise.

**XoLAGOHxO**

I somehow managed to go through the rest of the day without breaking down. I didn't cry, I didn't hyperventilate, I didn't try to plot revenge on Nate. Instead, I convinced my mom to let me hang out with Shane and to stay for dinner. Actually, Shane and I were going out to that diner we always went to. We had small conversations while eating, but I was drinking my dessert; a milkshake. I breathe in a deep breath and ask him the question that had been bothering me.

"Shane," I start, "you care about me, right?"

"Of course I do. I care about you so much. Is something wrong?"

"No, there's nothing wrong. I just wanted to make sure."

"You're the first girl that I've felt this serious about. I know that we've just met and everything, but I really like you."

"If you were to pick to stay with me or keep your popular reputation, what would you choose?"

"You, of course. I used to worry about my popularity, but that doesn't matter to me anymore. It's not important to me. Why would you ask? Do you doubt that I really have true feelings for you?'

"No, I don't doubt them at all. It's just.. everything's happened so fast," I lie. Well, it wasn't really a lie. Everything did happen out of nowhere, but that wasn't why I asked him that.

"You don't need to worry about anything. You'll always be really important to me, okay?'

"Okay," I say.

"Now raise your right hand and repeat after me." I laugh but do just that. "I, Jenny Huynh."

"I, Jenny Huynh."

"Promise to never doubt the amazing Shane Grey."

"Promise to never doubt the extremely cocky Grey Bear."

"Hey, that wasn't nice!"

I laugh until milk pours out of my nose. I grab a napkin and wipe it away. "Ha, you made milk run out through my nose." I was still laughing.

"Karma's a bitch, isn't it?'

"Yeah," I say, "it is."

"So.. admit that Shane Grey is hot and awesome."

"No, I will never admit that!"

"Come on, don't lie to yourself," he jokes.

"Shane, you're not that hot."

"Jenny, do you need to put on your glasses? I mean, look at me."

"Yeah, I see a guy that needs a haircut and to get his eyebrows tweezed."

"This hair is not going anywhere. And don't make fun of my eyebrows! It's not my fault they're extremely thick. The only guys that tweeze their eyebrows are fags."

"Really, it's like staring at two hairy caterpillars. We need to get that fixed. I work at a nail salon. Just give me a pair of tweezers and I could do it for you." Really, I also knew how to do eyebrows since I worked at a nail salon.

"I'm not gonna trust you with my face. It's too gorgeous for you to purposely destroy."

"Aw, now why would I harm Grey Bear's face?"

"Because Jelly is an evil and devious girl."

"Dude," Fauzul says, "Jenny's right. You really need to get those eyebrows fixed."

"Yeah, they can be as pretty as mine!" Caroline points out.

"Where the hell did you guys come from?!" Shane shrieks.

"Uh, I was born in America," Fauzul says.

"I know that, but you guys just pop up out of nowhere."

"Hey, that milkshake looks good!" Caroline exclaims. "I'm gonna go order one. Fauzul, let's go!"

Caroline grabs a hold of Fauzul's shirt and pulls him to a booth on the opposite side of the diner.

"Shane, I really can make your eyebrows as pretty as Caroline's."

"Last time I checked, I'm as straight as a line segment. No touchy the eyebrows!"

"Hey, that's my quote!" I said that when Angela accused me of being a lesbian. Back then, Shane didn't even know what a line segment was.

"I'm still not trusting you with my precious eyebrows." He was still smiling, though.

"Girls can make their boyfriends succumb to any request."

"Nope, I'm not that weak," he insists.

"Fine then. No kisses for a week." I smirk at his surprised reaction.

"No kisses just because I won't let you tweeze my eyebrows?"

"I won't even do much. I'll just thin them out a bit and make them less disgusting."

"Hey, you're not supposed to criticize my facial hair. You're supposed to worship my sexiness."

"Shane, what sexiness?"

"You're totally blind. Have you even seen me with my shirt off?"

"And you weren't making out with a girl? Nope."

"Check please!" Shane calls out to the waitress. She hands him the check and slips a piece of paper into his hand. She winks at him before walking to other customers.

"What's that?" I ask, referring to that small piece of paper. He unfolds it then throws it away in the nearest trash can.

"Yet another phone number. See, even that girl saw how hot I was."

"She totally ignored me," I growl.

"Better get used to that. I'm a total chick magnet."

We pay for the food and get in his car. Really, I will never get over just how amazing his car is. We pull up to my house and I say goodbye to him after I get out of his car. He gets out too and says, "Hey, I'll walk you to your door."

"You don't have to," I say.

"But I want to," he insists.

"How cliché." I roll my eyes at him.

Our short walk up my driveway to my front door was rather silent. We reach the front door, and his hands were in his pockets, and my arms were crossed. The light by the door was on, and I was rocking on the heels of my feet.

"So.." we both say at the same time. I giggle a bit.

"Goodnight?" I ask, rather than say. This is turning out to be some cheesy scene from a sappy movie.

As if reading my thoughts, Shane leans down and lightly kisses my lips. I smile into the kiss and rest my right hand on his chest since I obviously couldn't wrap my arms around his neck. I hear the door open and somebody coughing. I reluctantly pull away from Shane and turn to face the person who ruined the perfect moment.

"Hey Shane!" Gina perkily greets him.

"What's up, Gina?" he asks.

"Oh, I just wanted to say hello and stuff. Jenny, you should be getting inside now."

"If you don't go back inside the house and leave us alone right now, I'm going to tell mom what happened at Shane's party," I threaten.

"Man, you must be on your period or something. Later, Shane!" She rolls her eyes at me and closes the door.

"Now, where were we?" I ask. We go back to that moment like bratty little Gina never interrupted us in the first place.

Shane had changed. I knew it. Nate was wrong, and Shane did care about me. And I cared about him, too. A lot.


	40. REJECTED

**A/N - This little thing called school totally took up a whole lot of my time. Yeah, it sucks. A lot. Please do me a favor and vote on my poll. I'm so sorry for the late update! BTW, I know that over 90 people have alerted this story. I challenge you alerters to review. I wanna see who'll review and who won't. I'll make a mental note of it.**

"You're kidding me," I say to Mrs. Gallagher. So it's after school and I'm sitting in the comfy recliner and she's sitting across from me at her desk, hands neatly folded.

"Jenny, I don't joke around about the plays," she says.

"Uh, please care to take a look at me." I point to my cast.

"I don't see why that would hold you back." She shrugs. I roll my eyes and pull my hair. "So it's settled; you'll help Caroline with production. Excellent."

How could this happen? What was the whole point of me injuring myself? Oh yeah, to get away from Nate. But stubborn drama director just won't give me a break, huh? You know what she said to me to even get me in her office? 'By auditioning, you offered all voluntary help that you could physically contribute.'

Bullshit if you ask me. And if I didn't help, she also mentioned that it'd be a bad mark on my record for college; refusing to help something you auditioned for in the first place. _It's for college, it's for college_ I remind myself. I get up from the recliner and walk out the door, making sure to slam it. Yeah, I'm pissed. No, more than pissed. I'm furious. I need some way to take out my anger.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Jenny, are you alright?" Shane asks me in his car. I did all my homework in the library while waiting for him to finish football practice.

"Grey Bear, I need for you to do me a favor." I give him a devious smile. Perfect time to make my boyfriend more presentable yet release my anger.

"Sure, what do you have in mind?"

"Oh, just make a right by that diner," I say.

After about three minutes of listening to my directions, we pull up to a place called Elegant Nails. Yup, my cousin Linh's nail salon. "What are we doing here?" Shane asks, following me to the door.

"Oh, you'll find out soon," I say.

You see, this is the nail salon that I work at each summer. I encounter a lot of girls from Green Oak, but I guess it's no big deal. You know, a little girl doing nails. So after I greeted my cousins and aunts that were working there, I sat Shane down in a chair, but not just any chair.

"Why are they laughing?" Shane asks. A couple of my cousins were already starting to snicker.

"Just close your eyes and everything will be fine," I assure him. He does so and I pull the waxing cart next to me.

"What the heck are you doing?!" he shrieks.

"Oh, just putting hot wax on your eyebrows . Move and the entire thing will get ripped off," I warn.

His hands grip the handles of the chair. I use my one free hand to put that piece of fabric on the wax, and after rubbing it in, I pull it off. "OW!" he yells rather loudly. "Okay, no more waxing my eyebrows!"

I laugh as I hand him a mirror. So now one of his eyebrows was half decent while the other still looked absolutely horrible. "Fine, continue," he grumbles. "But only because I don't want one good eyebrow and a crappy one," he adds.

After some more waxing and several screams, I finish and give him back the mirror. I'm so good, I managed to make his eyebrows perfect with only one hand. Oh yes, the Jenny Huynh is absolutely amazing. He thoroughly inspects his eyebrows and hands me back the mirror.

"They're okay," he mumbles.

That's just Shane talk for admitting defeat. Oh yes, the girlfriend wins in the end. And soon enough, we were in Shane's car on the way back to my house.

"Grey Bear, your eyebrows really do look a lot better, and not in a faggish way, either," I say. Really, they still looked like his old ones, just more natural looking.

"You are so lucky that you're you, because if you weren't, you'd be dead," he jokes.

"Oh yes, I'm definitely feeling the love right now." I roll my eyes and laugh. Talking to Shane really does lighten my mood.

It seemed like I was always happy every single time I was with him. Well, mostly, but whatever. He didn't know why I wasn't fine, but he didn't push for the answer. All in all, he's for lack of a better word.. Perfect. There may be no such thing as perfection in this life, but in my eyes, he's my definition of perfect. He's funny, he makes me happy, and I haven't seen signs of him going back to his whore-ish ways. I guess I like him a lot, but it'll be a long time before I say that one word, the extremely debatable word, to him.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Jenny!" Caroline perkily greets me at play rehearsal the next day after school. "So, if you're working with me, we'll just be deciding which scenes to rehearse and when. We'll also give the actors and actresses some tips on how to say things. This will be really fun, trust me."

I space out as she continues talking about the play, what scenes were important, the names of the actors and actresses. I guess I was just her little advisor, there because Mrs. Gallagher sentenced me to prison in the auditorium after school each day for the next two weeks or so. As for how I managed to ignore Nate, I didn't. He always pulled me aside to talk to me during our classes somehow. It was mainly taunting about how I was still a part of the play. I was almost positive that he set up Mrs. Gallagher to do it, but maybe the evil woman could've thought it up herself. What was I thinking? Of course it was Nate!

I follow Caroline and sit next to here in the front row as she shouts directions to everyone. My eyes were almost asleep when I heard her yell, "Nate, you're actually here!"

My head shoots up from it's place in the crook of my arm and I try to smooth out my messy hair. There was Nate, some sweat still on him. I guess he got an early dismissal from practice or something.

"So, what scene should I do?" he asks Caroline, not me.

"What do you think?" Caroline asks me.

I smirk and say, "How about that kiss with Christie?"

"Excellent idea!" Caroline says. "Christie, time to practice the kiss with Nate!"

"What?!" Christie yells from the opposite side of the auditorium. She was going over her script, obviously.

"Since Nate's actually here, we might as well rehearse your biggest parts," Caroline reasons.

"Oh, I'd be glad to!" Man, I know that she likes him, but could the girl be any more obvious? Nate's internal battle to not get his ass out of here was really giving me some sick form of satisfaction. You mess with me, I mess with you.

"Is it really important right now?" he asks.

"That's one of the only things that you do in the entire play. Might as well rehearse that small part since you're here. Just over two weeks until the first performance," I taunt.

Nate and Christie walk up on the stage, one being excited, the other begrudgingly obeying. Since the line before the kiss was with one of the Darcy sisters, Nate pretends to say it to someone then turns and faces Christie. I look at the script in my hand. It was a simple short kiss, nothing serious. I'm not sure, but I can swear that Nate's sweating even more now. I see his Adam's apple move as Christie leans up to kiss him. He closes his eyes, almost bracing himself for something horrible.

I was seriously about to fall out of my seat in anticipation. But then Christie does the unthinkable, well, at least in my opinion. She kisses his cheek, blushes, then runs down the stage and yells to us, "I forgot! I had a doctor's appointment after school!"

Nate's expression really is hilarious. He just looks shocked. Not happy or amused, just really shocked. Caroline's mouth is open while everyone in the auditorium looks at the door in which Christie just left. And then it's me that breaks the silence. The large auditorium gets filled with the sound of my uncontrolled laughter. I fall out of my seat and sit on the ground, clutching my stomach.

"What's so funny?!" Nate asks once he breaks out of his reverie.

"She-sh-sh. You totally got rejected!" I manage to say. My laughs die down pretty soon and I get up and point at Nate. "Rejected, rejected. You just got rejected! R-E, J-E, C-T-E-D, rejected!" It was the perfect moment to use the cheer from Zoey 101.

"No, I didn't get rejected," Nate says, "she was just afraid of my incredible hotness."

"Oh, 'afraid of your incredible hotness.' Really, how lamer can you get?" I retort.

"Really, all girls are attracted to me at some point, it's the inevitable."

"Jenny, Nate's pretty hot," Caroline says.

"We need to get Christie!" I realize.

I run up to the auditorium's entrance doors and rush out. Christie was nowhere in sight. I slow down and walk out of the school, looking around the front for any sign of her. Behind one of the building supports, she was standing there, looking at the ground, arms across her chest. She was facing away from me, so I tiptoe my way to her and tap her shoulder. She screams and turns around. Wow, what an overreaction.

"My God, you nearly gave me a heart attack!"

"Uh, all I did was tap your shoulder," I say.

"Whoops, sorry. I guess I was too dazed and in thought." She shrugs.

"Why did you run away?" I ask her. This was like déjà vu. When Nate first kissed me, he ran away, too.

She runs her hands through her hair in exasperation and slides down the column support. "Jenny, you should know why," she mumbles.

"You don't have to tell me, but I'm just concerned. I know that you like Nate," I say.

"That's the thing; I like him. But so do you! I'm your friend, so I can't just steal a guy from you like that." Man, first the guy code, now it's the girl code. But us girls always break it, right? Ha, only the backstabbing bitches.

"Christie, I don't like Nate anymore. You're free to pursue him, don't worry. I'm pretty sure that he will like you, too." She looks up at me, a gleam of hope in her eyes.

"Really?" she asks.

"Yeah," I assure her, "I'm totally positive about it."

I pull her up just as a black Jeep pulls up by us. The car honks and Christie walks to the front door and opens it. "I really did have a doctor's appointment." She winks, gets in, and leaves. Wow, perfect time to get a check-up if you ask me. A giggle escapes my lips as I sit down next to Caroline in the auditorium once again.

"So, what was up with Christie?" she asks.

"She had a doctor's appointment to go to," I reply.

"Wow."

"Yeah. 'Wow.'"

**A/N - I know it sucked, and I have no excuse except that I'm wondering what the grade I got on that History essay was. We had to do research over the weekend and write the essay during one period in class. You know, comparing Mao Zedong and Deng Xiaoping's political and economic views. Took me an hour to write…**

**Let's celebrate over 100,000 words! Please reward me with undeserved reviews. Once again, so sorry for the late update. BTW, make sure to vote in my poll about a new story idea. **


	41. Reality Hits Hard

**A/N - I AM SO SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING FOR NEARLY TWO MONTHS!!! My god, life caught up with me, I got sidetracked, grew a disliking to Disney in general, and started writing Tokio Hotel fiction. But I've gotta be honest; Green Oak is now something that I kind of despise. This was my first story, and it's almost like my little piece of scrap paper. Mistakes that I make on here teach me to write better, but this will forever be my little baby. Wow, that sounds so cheesy.. But I also hate the fact that it's always in present tense.**

**IT'S SO FREAKING HARD TO WRITE IN PRESENT TENSE!! So from here on out, this story is taking a dramatic turn, alright? I'm not going to edit the first chapters because I want to look back one day and see how I write. If you read my other stories, they're a lot better now. This story is going with the past tense verbs now, alright? Man, I've gotta get in the groove of things again.**

"Jenny?" my mom asked me as I started to put away the dishes.

"Yeah?" I replied.

"What's going on with you and Shane?" Oh no, she was catching onto me. You see, my mom established this rule that I wouldn't be able to date until I was a junior in high school. She hasn't stressed it lately, but it's starting to freak me out since she brought it up.

"We're close friends," I lied. I mentally slapped myself.

"That's not the vibe that I've been getting," she told me. I could feel beads of sweat producing on my forehead.

"Uhm, exactly what vibe _have_ you been getting?" I asked.

"Hmm, let's see; he drives you to school every morning, you sure do seem to be at his house a lot, and I don't want to seem rude, but I get this vibe from him that he's a player that sleeps around," she said. I gulped down the bile that was coming up from my throat. Another thing about my mom; she reads people like open books without even knowing them. It's almost scary.

"He's a respectable young man," was all I said. "Excuse me, but I'm going up to my room to finish some homework."

"Wait!" she called when I reached the stairs. I stopped and waited. "Promise me that you won't fall for his traps, that you'll be smart and careful." I nodded before running up the steps into my blue room. I sat down in the center of my queen-sized bed and curled into a ball. What did she mean when she told me to be careful? Yeah, I really haven't known Shane all that long. Yeah, I know that he's a huge player that probably hasn't gone without sleeping with a girl for more than two weeks.

Then a feeling started to produce in my chest. It's obviously been over a month since he's slept with any girl. He couldn't go that long without sex, could he? I knew that things like that were considered addictions, that they were hard to get over. But quitting cold turkey?

"No," I said to myself. "Don't doubt him. He's been wonderful to you and you shouldn't have that little faith in him."

But how sure could I be? I hated it whenever my mom spoke to me about stuff like this. She was just trying to look out for me, but it just makes me overanalyze things to the point where my head's about to burst.

Shane's not the only thing to worry about; there was Nate. I was still mad at him for snitching on me, even though I somehow managed to get out of that predicament. I couldn't be more happy that tomorrow was Friday and that I'd have the weekend to rest and be alone.

**XoLAGOHxO**

"Hey Jenny," Shane greeted me like he always did in the morning.

"Hi Shane," I replied. I was tired from lack of sleep the previous night.

"So, how'd you sleep?" he asked.

"Not so well," I replied. "How're things with you and Nate?"

"That's something that I'd rather not talk about," he said.

"Okay, I understand." I strapped on my seatbelt and rested against the seat. The next thing I knew, somebody was gently shoving my shoulder and telling me to wake up. I groggily rubbed my eyes then unbuckled myself. I made sure to give Shane a short hug before getting out of his car and stepping foot inside the school. I was still rubbing my eyes when I reached my locker. I opened the lock and got my needed books out. I nearly jumped when I closed the locker since there was Nate in all of his incredibly handsome glory. Did I just say incredibly handsome glory? What the hell, I'm supposed to be mad at this guy.

"So, you going to play rehearsal today?" he nonchalantly asked. "I'm not going since we have a game against Harriton."

"Uh, do I really have a choice? I'm helping Caroline directing. Have you memorized your lines with Elizabeth?" I decided to not be a bitch to him since I was too tired to yell at him.

"No, I haven't memorized them, but I've read over them. I end up with Lydia, right?" he said.

"Lydia? I don't remember Lydia or anything. We haven't gotten that far in rehearsal yet," I replied.

"She's one of the Bennet sisters. I marry her in the end. Who plays her?" he asked.

"How am I supposed to know? Let's get to homeroom before we're late." I pushed him aside and walked over to the first class of the day, if it counts as a class. When he sat down beside me, he pulled a piece of paper from his agenda.

"According to this cast list which I conveniently have, the girl who plays Lydia is this girl named Casey Brenner," he said. A bell dinged in my head as I remembered something. When I wore that maid costume, there was a poll on if my outfit was cute or not. There was a Casey and an Ashley under the "no" section.

"How many Caseys are there in this school?" I desperately asked Nate.

"Uhm, only one that I know of. The school's not really that big," he said.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck," I repeated to myself as I continuously banged my head against my Biology text book. _Not another set of jealous girls. Why did I ever get myself involved with boys?_

"What's wrong?" Nate asked, for once being concerned.

"Whoa, hold on. Casey's the Korean chick, right?" I asked. But wait, that didn't make sense. Her last name wasn't Korean. I remember a Korean girl with a script in her hands that I didn't recognize.

"Yeah, she's adopted," he answered. "She's actually pretty nice. She's a sophomore and we were friends in grade school. I haven't really talked to her since then."

"Oh my fucking god. I hate this school, I hate you, I hate drama, and I sure as hell hate Jane Austen for even writing this play!" I rambled. I hit my head with the text book one final time before resting my head on my folded arms. Why does the world hate me so? Or maybe I'm overreacting. Maybe I'm over thinking things. Ugh, mind, stop going so fast!

**XoLAGOHxO**

I slammed open Mrs. Gallagher's door and stomped inside her room. She was sitting there with her reading glasses on, reading over the script on the play.

"Jenny, there you are," she said. "I was just about to call you down. Now, I think that we should organize everything better. We have a week until tech week which is when the stage crew starts getting involved with the furniture and lighting. Now, maybe we could start with the scene when the Bennets discuss the arrival of Bing-"

"I do not want to be a part of this production!" I yelled. "Okay, so maybe I kind of gave myself over to you by auditioning for the play, which Nate forced me to do. And I cannot be Georgiana because of my stupid cast. Now, there is no need for me to be involved in this at all. Caroline can handle everything on her own." I took in a deep breath as I closed my short rant. Her green eyes were wide with shock.

"Are you not happy with being the director's assistant?" she asked.

"I'm not happy with being involved in this entire stupid thing!" I angrily replied.

"Would you rather film them and organize the headshots and the program?" she suggested.

"I want out on this- wait, what?" I was confused. Why would she just offer me something like that out of nowhere? She cleared her throat and folded her hands.

"I knew right from the very beginning that you didn't want to be a part of this play, but I see a lot of potential in your acting. I want you to be a part of this production because it'll help you and give you extra credit in your English class. I apologize for forcing you to be Caroline's assistant, but I'm now kindly asking you to be a part of our production. You may film the rehearsals and have the main cast members watch it to see their mistakes and correct it. We don't have much time before the first curtain rises." I gave her a doubtful look. "We could always use more help."

"You know that I'm not going to give in that easily," I said. "You gave me no mercy even when I just had a surgery the previous day. You think I'm going to say 'yes' just like that? You know what, I'll think about it. I'll tell you the answer on Monday."

Before the bitch could say anything else, I stomped out of her office and made sure to slam her door as loud as I could. I trudged down the hall and to the lobby, out of the front doors. Looks like I'm walking home again since the buses just left. Poo.

**XoLAGOHxO**

Okay, so I kind of caved. I didn't feel like walking nearly three miles to my house and decided to watch the play rehearsal until the football game started. I did my homework while waiting for it. Might as well watch it, you know. My mom was hesitant in letting me stay that long, but after a couple minutes, I convinced her to say yes. I'd been doodling on my agenda with a pen when Caroline announced that play rehearsal was over.

I left my backpack in the auditorium and went into the parking lot through its direct exit. It felt good to relax. I've been stuck in pointless drama for what felt like years. A love triangle, scheming girls, people spending all their time thinking of ways to piss me off even further. And my life was somewhat put in danger. Maybe it was all worth it for Shane; maybe.

The air smelt of freshly cut grass as I skipped my way to the football field several hundred feet away. To tell you people the truth, the last time that I was really happy was during the summer. The typical naïve pre-freshman. That's what I once was. But that all changed so quickly and so drastically. Shouldn't I be happy that I've got Shane now?

Unfortunately, the answer is no. Nicole's got Jason to take up her time. Shane's taking up a lot of mine. Then there's Nate, the one who was always sweet and adorable, but he had those anger management issues. Everybody's got their flaws. Mine is that I'm pretty selfish at times. How have I gone through in the past month? Just one month. I just want my life to be normal for once, for everything to go back to the way it was.

I want the drama to go away. I don't want so many people to hate me. I don't want to be in the center of everything. My mom must be pretty concerned and my sister is getting corrupted. There's so many unbelievable problems going on. I'm only fourteen years old! I'm still a child! I can't take all of this at once. It's just too much.

My skipping slowed down to a slow walk as I reviewed my life. I wanted Nicole and I to always be together again. I want to not have even met the Grey brothers. I wanted my biggest worries to be about schoolwork and friendship drama. But through all of this, I couldn't help but think of how selfish I was being. It was always about me, not everybody else.

Was Nicole feeling lonely like I did?

How was Shane dealing with quitting his habit cold turkey?

What's going on with Nate and the whole dreaded triangle?

And maybe Jason feels neglected.

My little sister is turning into a person I don't even know anymore.

Then there's those three girls stuck in a juvenile center because of me.

I've caused so much trouble by getting involved with these boys. And for what? A relationship I'm not even sure that'll last? The more I think about it, the more I think that it's not worth it. I just want to fix everything and everyone. But I'm only a young and naïve child, I can't do all of that. But it's me that caused it. Everything leads back to me. Maybe Gina feels like the ugly duckling of our family, that I outshine her with my grades.

I've got a football game to look forward to and a weekend to try to sort out my problems. I'll deal with all of this later. I just wish that it'd be easy.

_Too bad wishes never come out the way you plan._

**A/N - Do you guys like the new approach to the story? I wanted Jenny to mature and realize all the problems around her. Maybe this story will end before everything gets resolved. I've realized that several of my ideas are completely impossible, but this is the result of a girl having an extremely boring summer. Haha, please leave me your true thoughts. I'll be updating SOON.**

**P.S.: Who's interested in reading my Tokio Hotel story? According to the FF rating system, it's rated M for Mature or R for Restricted. My, my, a fourteen year old girl writing stuff that sixteen-year-olds are supposed to read. Wow.**


	42. Important Announcement!

**Guys, I've been a horrible person for quite some time. I have neglected this story due to personal issues and reasons. That's why I feel like I should do something that's seriously… BAMTASTIC!!! Okay, ignore my random outburst…. **

**I first want to tell you guys that I've seriously changed. No, I'm not exactly anti-Disney anymore (I'll change my profile when I feel like it) but I definitely owe you guys a couple things. First, I'll start with deleting stories that I will not finish. Like, Ink Heart, Girl Under the Yankee Cap (I'm really sorry, Smile, for letting you down) and Six Weeks. Pyro didn't expect much, so not a lot of disappointment is expected. I will continue Two Worlds Collide, but I just might transfer that to the Jonas Brothers fan fiction site. Actually, I did quite a few months ago… the first chapter got one review. Maybe I'll come up with a better summary… but I've got a HUGE announcement for you all!!!!**

**LIFE AT GREEN OAK HIGH IS GOING TO BE REWRITTEN!!!!!!!!! **

**I promise you people that this version is going to be a hundred times better. But unfortunately, a lot of things are going to change. **

**1) The ridiculous and unrealistic drama is going to tone down.**

**2) Jenny will still be there, along with Nicole, but other original characters are getting their butts kicked out.**

**3) Mitchie will be in the story as a childhood friend, and the GRAY (yes, I will now spell it the correct way even if it's less pretty) brothers will not be your typical jocks.**

**4) Jason is going to be the airhead jock, yes. Shane's going to be the sick puppy following Jason around. Nate is going to be a musical and quiet kid. **

**5) Camp Rock, the actual camp itself, will somehow be in the story. Nate went to Camp Rock the summer before his freshman year since he is now musical.**

**6) Jenny will still have the flaw of quickly judging people and her personality might change a bit. Nicole will have her own different storyline. **

**Basically, the story is still in the works, and the first chapter will possibly be posted today. It will be somewhat similar, but I'm going to put subplots and make sure it's readable. Another thing; verb tenses and grammar issues are a thing of the past.**

**My style of writing has drastically changed, and I can hope you people will adjust to this. This story was my little baby and now I'm helping it to grow healthily. I promise that this will not be like reading a beta'd version of LAGOH. It'll be a whole lot more different yet still keep some of the same essence.**

**If I still have any reviewers around, tell me your thoughts; are you anticipating this, are you gonna think it's terrible?**

**Once again, my dearest apologies to keeping everyone waiting. **

**Love, Mashiitastic. (aka Judy, NOT Jenny. Some people think that my actual name is Jenny, and this is not true.)**


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